I've always had a hard time with goodbyes. There's something about separating, and acknowledging that separation, that I've always found sharp and painful. I don't like taking people to the airport, don't care for the obligatory office farewell luncheon and am particularly adverse to funerals. In fact, so deeply ingrained is this quirk that I rarely, if ever, say goodbye to anyone. Instead, I usually opt for the far more optimistic "talk to you soon," even when I know there is little, if any, chance of that happening.

Still, I understand that saying goodbye is part of the natural cycle of things. I also understand its cinematic importance. Without an occasional dash along the train tracks as a loved one heads for war or Rhett Butler's declaration that he doesn't give a, well, you know, movies would be far less interesting. Here are five of the finest (if such a thing is possible) goodbyes in Hollywood history.

CASABLANCA (1942): The climactic parting in this classic is really the reason the rest of the film exists. Not only does it wrap up remaining plot threads but it also manages to make a permanent parting of ways one of the most romantic acts in movie history.

THE GRAPES OF WRATH (1940): Tom Joad's (Henry Fonda) farewell to his mother and family ranks as one of the more memorable moments in film history. Interestingly, the speech didn't appear in the novel by John Steinbeck. The author's original ending proved too controversial for Hollywood censors, so the final scene was written as a replacement.

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK (1980): Young love torn asunder by the will of an alien gangster and a intergalactic overlord. Man, who hasn't been there? The farewell that precedes Han Solo's (Harrison Ford) quick freeze is actually one of the lighter moments in this, the darkest of the original trio of Star Wars films.

SHANE (1953): What's stirring about the final farewell in Shane is not the parting of ways itself, but the reluctance by all involved to go their separate ways. It's no coincidence that a young boy's calling "Come back, Shane" at a figure vanishing in the prairie distance has become a pivotal movie moment.

BORN FREE (1966): When a mother lion is killed in self-defense, the man who pulled the trigger and his wife raise the orphaned cub and then, painfully and tearfully, release it into the wild. Based on a true story, this docudrama proved wildly successful and brought attention to the plight of big cats in Africa.

Reach Steven Uhles at (706) 823-3626 or steven.uhles@augustachronicle.com.