I watched Thelma and Louise this evening. It struck me: the ending is exactly a 心中 (shinjū) moment. In Japanese culture, when two or more people who are bound by love (either romantic love, or familial love) choose death together, it is called shinjū. Shinjū is a popular theme of Japanese literature and film, but it is a relatively rare theme, or an impulse that is difficult to empathize with, in Western culture.