The very last shot in “Boys on the Side” is of an empty room. As the camera pans around it, we remember who was in it, and how much we grew to care about them. We may be a little surprised by how that happened, because the movie starts out seeming contrived and routine, and only gradually gathers power until, by the end, it is completely involving.
Ebert’s review of Boys on the Side -> https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/boys-on-the-side-1995