Seven film twists audiences often misinterpret

Collider highlights seven movie twists that many viewers have misunderstood, arguing that the reveals often serve thematic purposes rather than mere shock value.

The examples include Enemy, whose final tarantula image is read as a symbol of relationships, trauma or the life the protagonist must accept; Iron Man 3, which turns the Mandarin into actor Trevor Slattery to expose domestic opportunism and corporate malfeasance; The Village, revealed as a present-day social experiment that uses fear as control; and Total Recall, whose ending was deliberately left ambiguous by director Paul Verhoeven to question identity and reality. The list also covers Fight Club, where Tyler Durden is an alternate personality and the film critiques toxic masculinity; American Psycho, which treats the truth of Bateman’s crimes as less important than the satire of 1980s yuppie anonymity; and Gone Girl, whose frame-up and final power shift are framed as a satire of performative marriage.

The piece notes that some twists have been divisive or reevaluated—The Village, for example, has been reassessed more positively—and that several endings were intended to invite interpretation rather than deliver tidy answers. It also points out that the Trevor Slattery character later recurs in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and that debates over meaning continue for each film.

Key Topics

Culture, Enemy, The Village, Total Recall, Fight Club, Gone Girl