I suppose “Best” is an odd term, in this case…it could mean “most heartwrenching.” Or “Most touching” Or “tastefully executed.” Or even “most satisfying.” (If it’s providing closure…or the audience is really glad to see the character dead and buried, literally).
But…it has to be a funeral. Death scenes don’t count.
And it has to be for a fictional character. Dramatized funerals of real people don’t count.
My nominations?
•Transformers: Beast Wars
[spoiler]Dinobot’s funeral. Spoiled somewhat by Optimus flying his damned surfboard during the “missing man” formation, but otherwise really well done.
This is also probably the only robot funeral that’ll be on this list. And probably one of the half-dozen robot funerals in all of cinema.
[/spoiler]
•Disney’s The Black Hole
[spoiler]The “funeral” of one of Rhinehart’s “robots.” (Okay, I lied. two robot funerals are on this list…sort of)
Monk-robed pallbearers carrying a coffin through a dark, gothic-styled spaceship, and then firing the deceased into a black hole. How can you improve on that?[/spoiler]
•Justice League
Solomon Grundy’s funeral, on a distant alien world. Really beautiful scenery, nice music.
The Big Chill, when Karen sits at the organ in the church and plays You Can’t Always Get What You Want - cracked me up the first time I saw the movie and every viewing since.
Does the funeral in Tom Sawyer count?
(The heartwrenching part, to me, is when Tom says, “Aunt Polly, it ain’t fair. Somebody’s got to be glad to see Huck.” )
Funerals in Let’s Not Talk About All These Women and The Comic because they both used “Yes, We Have No Bananas” as background music. I want that at mine.
TWIN PEAKS- Laura Palmer’s funeral, when her Dad Leland hysterically throws himself on the coffin as its being lowered, the motor lowering it jams & makes the coffin go up & down, up & down…
then later, a group of people in the diner are giggling as (I think) the waitress Shelly (Madchen Amick) tells them about the oscillating coffin.
Days of our Lives is on a real killing spree these days, and the recent triple funeral for Abe, Jack & Maggie ended up with a fourth coffin with a character’s name on it
Caroline Brady is scheduled to die next, and then Tony Dimera
While I didn’t much like Four Weddings and a Funeral overall, I found the funeral scene, especially the recitation of the Auden poem, very moving.
For something more unusual, the X-Files episode Humbug (quoting from memory): “While I was not personally acquainted with the deceased, I would like to honor his memory by driving this iron spike through my chest…”
I was going to say Gareth’s funeral from ‘Four Weddings & A Funeral’ as well. So now I’ll just second it.
And add that the funeral for George Macyntire (sp?) in the pilot episode of Red Dwarf is pretty amusing.
The funeral that took place in Neil Gaiman’s Sandman series.
Yes, Dream’s funeral. Complete with mausoleum building, memories of friends and acquaintances, eulogies from guests, and a poignant goodbye from Death.
