The Final Destination

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The Final Destination

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The Final Destination

Bobby Campo, Shantel VanSanten, Nick Zano, Haley Webb, Mykelti Williamson, Krista Allen, Andrew Fiscella

On what should have been a fun-filled day at the races, Nick O’Bannon has a horrific premonition in which a bizarre sequence of events causes multiple race cars to crash, sending flaming debris into t...( read more  read more... )he stands, brutally killing his friends and causing the upper deck of the stands to collapse on him. When he comes out of this grisly nightmare Nick panics, persuading his girlfriend, Lori, and their friends, Janet and Hunt, to leave… escaping seconds before Nick’s frightening vision becomes a terrible reality. Thinking they’ve cheated death, the group has a new lease on life, but unfortunately for Nick and Lori, it is only the beginning. As his premonitions continue and the crash survivors begin to die one-by-one — in increasingly gruesome ways — Nick must figure out how to cheat death once and for all before he, too, reaches his final destination. The film marks the latest in the highly popular “Final Destination” series, and its first 3D installment, giving horror fans an especially visceral thrill ride.

Id: 11027750

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The Final Destination Recent Reviews
  • flickfever
    October 30, 2009
    flickfever
    In a franchise that was starting to see its potent thrill factor wane in recent years, we get what is presumed to be the "final" chapter. Of course, in Hollywood, a final movie in a series is as sure as a diva retiring from the stage. But, if we are to believe this is the final f...( read more)ilm in the "quad"rilogy, it's quite a disappointment.

    Not that the previous three films were anything to regard as high drama or a fine collection of American cinema, but this last movie has really nothing going for it except for one thing. And this thing is what saves the flick from complete disaster...it's in 3-D.

    And, the fact that these movies are built around gruesome death sequences and elaborate set-ups, executions and payoff, the 3-D format is essential to your enjoyment of this chiller.

    Of course, you know the formula: hot teen with a premonition saves friends from certain death only to have death certainly knock them off one-by-one anyway. It's definitely nothing you'd be upset with me for spoiling (unless you've been living under a rock the last 10 years and aren't aware of the 'Destination' movies and its gimmicky plots.) But what makes this installment stand apart from its preceding trilogy is that the 3-D delivers on its promise to make you jump and flinch.

    I wouldn't recommend seeing this film in 2-D unless you're a die-hard fan of the films. But if you're even a bit hesitant to see it because of its storytelling (and acting) pitfalls, I'd say see it in the version that'll require you to wear stylish glasses. It's definitely worth the extra fee to see bodies suffer unimaginable trauma in the third dimension.
  • PvtCaboose91
    October 19, 2009
    PvtCaboose91
    "We're all gonna die, right? There's gonna be a crash!"


    Sequel-camouflaging title notwithstanding, The Final Destination is the fourth instalment of the now 9-year-old horror series wherein the Grim Reaper eviscerates those who have avoided their predestined dea

    ...( read more)th. By this point in the franchise, one would hope for the filmmakers to finally tweak the time-worn formula (perhaps explore the source of the premonitions, or place the action somewhere more exciting) but if someone pitched this idea to the studio executives, they were outvoted...this fourth film follows the formula to the letter without deviation. The sole element that has been changed is the visuals, which are now in 3-D (meaning blood, sharp objects and viscera are thrown at your face). The Final Destination does get credit for cutting straight to the chase; brushing aside both story and characterisation to plunge straight into the delightful gore. But the film is too rote, and it's handled weakly by those involved who were clearly more interested in box office returns than refreshing genre creativity.


    For those unfamiliar with the three prior movies (released in 2000, 2003 and 2006), the recurring set-up is exceedingly simple: a group of characters are supposed to die in a terrible accident, but they survive because one of them has a premonition of said accident, and they escape before it actually happens. While this would logically suggest that they've been given a second chance, it isn't long before the Grim Reaper returns to claim the souls of those who evaded his scythe. Thus, The Final Destination commences with a group of four friends attending a NASCAR event. One of them, Nick (Campo), experiences the obligatory vision of a crash so implausibly epic that it causes a series of explosions and results in the death of dozens...including those of himself and his friends. Since his vision was so vivid, Nick is sent into a turbulent panic, and frantically attempts to leave the venue. He and a number of people do so, which leaves a motley assortment of survivors who must now navigate the dangerous waters of life-after-averted-death. The Grim Reaper spends the next 70 minutes of the film re-killing the survivors in meticulous ways.


    Inexplicably, the main characters are very quickly able to figure out that the spirit of doom is hunting them - they just know purely because it's in the screenplay (though the word "Google" is uttered by one of the characters in a half-hearted attempt to justify their knowledge). Like its predecessors, The Final Destination does contain vague notions of expanding upon the mythology of the series, but there's minuscule effort on the part of the filmmakers to go through with it.
    What was the source of Nick's premonition? Not important enough to explore, it seems. Why does Nick continue to experience premonitions which detail how the next survivor will die? No-one involved had an interest in addressing that either. The Final Destination is virtually a carbon copy of the preceding films, except that it's packaged in digital 3-D and eschews a numerical affix in favour of a definitive "the" in the title to suggest it is the final destination...unless, of course, the cash registers ring hard and often enough to warrant another follow-up.


    Director David R. Ellis (a former stuntman-turned-director) makes his return to the director's chair after having helmed the second movie, which was arguably superior to the first (X-Files alumni James Wong co-wrote and directed the first & third instalments). In terms of delivering what the series promises, Ellis doesn't disappoint; beginning the film with a suitably horrific and spectacular disaster that kills dozens of people. And taking the ride in 3-D - which is undoubtedly the most enjoyable way to experience The Final Destination - makes the sequence extremely spectacular. Beyond this opening action set-piece, however, Ellis is unable to electrify the material - he merely ticks off sequences one by one, concentrating more on shock value due to gore as opposed to intoxicating tension. The kill scenes - while enjoyable and occasionally gripping - are still far too elaborate to be believed. Domino effect situations like these are too unbelievable, especially in such bulk. With lack of suspense and with originality at an all-time low, it seems the filmmaker utilised the 3-D gimmick as an excuse to get lazy. At least the film manages to sustain a viewer's attention for its short 80-minute duration - there's certainly minimal downtime between the unapologetically brutal kill scenes that define these movies.


    Another problem with The Final Destination is that the characters are flat. Yes, it's incredibly rash to expect decent characterisations in a slasher flick, but the previous Final Destination films at least explored the basic backgrounds of the protagonists. A number of the main characters in this film, however, make absolutely no sense as people - they are apparently post-college and in their mid-20s, yet they don't appear to have a job to fund their comfortable lifestyle...they just inhabit an apartment and try mightily not to get killed. Tension for the most part relies on a viewer's ability to care for the characters, but with personality-deficient people within the movie, who really cares if they live or die? (As a side note, some of the characters in the prior Final Destination films were named after horror icons. This is unfortunately not retained here.)


    The acting is expectedly awful. Every single performer is generic, especially Bobby Campo who brings scarcely a modicum of intensity to his premonition-receiving character. Shantel VanSanten and Haley Webb are fairly interchangeable with the previous Final Destination starlets (they're gorgeous, have great bodies, and are instantly forgettable), while David Webb appears as the requisite jerk (who's dismissive of the whole concept that Death is out to get them). Obviously it's daft to expect decent acting when dealing with unfussy horror mechanics, but the ensemble often fails to provide requisite anxiety...they appear to look upon death as a mild nuisance akin to a lengthy red light.


    The Final Destination would be a terrible movie (even as far as horror sequels go) if it weren't for its sense of humour, which constantly reminds a viewer that the filmmakers were self-aware of how ridiculous the whole thing is. A scene in which a racist redneck is dragged to his fiery death after attempting to plant a burning cross in an African American man's yard is given an extra touch in the form of the car stereo blaring the song Why Can't We Be Friends? as it unfolds. The climax is set in a movie theatre primed to explode while playing a 3-D movie that features a ticking time-bomb (which is actually footage from The Long Kiss Goodnight).


    Whether the "more of the same, only in 3-D" approach to The Final Destination will satisfy you depends entirely on your taste. While this reviewer would have liked to see the filmmakers mine other thematic areas, there's still enough popcorn entertainment here to warrant a watch.
  • sheens431
    September 21, 2009
    sheens431
    Ok, the only thing worth seeing in this movie is the 3D stuff. If you don't know the story behind every Final Destination movie by now, then you really need to get out more.

    Lots of people die and there's lots of blood. But this time stuff gets thrown in your face. And actuall...( read more)y did a decent job of surprising you with the stuff that comes at you. A few times I knew something was coming, but for the most part it was surprising.

    If this movie wasn't in 3D I'd say skip it, b/c there's nothing that special about it. But if you get a chance to see it 3D, go for it.
  • briandeguelle
    September 21, 2009
    briandeguelle
    so so of movie same story and not alot of ideas left.saving grace is that the film runs a beif 75 mins so you out in time for a few drink you might need it...
  • MovieGeek13
    September 19, 2009
    MovieGeek13
    I don't know how to properly rate this movie. It's a terrible movie, offering a plot no different than the first Final Destination; only this time, it assumes you know how this is going to work, so it doesn't even bother to explain Death's Design properly. The acting is abysmal...( read more), and the movie only seems to exist to show us gory, graphic, and sometimes hilarious death scenes.
    But oddly enough, I was entertained by its badness. It was in 3D, and I'm pretty sure this movie would have been less enjoyable had I just seen in 2D, since it seemed to have been made to be exhibited using the former technology. The death scenes entertained me because I spent more time trying to figure out if they were even plausible rather than being grossed out by them. I know, thinking about realism in a movie like this is never a good way to go, but I was amused by the kind of thinking that produced a scene where a kid is sucked into the drain hole in a public swimming pool. The filmmakers even brought in a self-referential aspect, by having the climax play out in a movie theatre where people are watching a 3D movie. I couldn't help but smile.
    The first Final Destination was a pretty decent horror flick because it played on the notion that every choice you make takes you one step closer to death. Everything is predetermined, and if it's your time to die, no amount of cheating death will save you. The sequels, especially this fourth and final (?) installment kept the teenagers as the main characters, people who think they are invincible, and even though these teens think they can outsmart death, they never do. Death even has a sense of humour about it. Some of these deaths are so ironic they make you laugh. Other deaths play on your ability to predict how Death is going to manipulate the surroundings to kill someone. The films are as much black comedy as they are horror.
    What is there to say? You already know how this is going to play out. If you've felt like you've had enough of the series, skip this one. If you hadn't, you'll probably have a mildly fun time.
    As for me, I liked the 3D aspect. It didn't wow me, but I've never seen a horror film in 3D, and I enjoyed it enough to want to see another 3D horror film.
  • Imacoolkid
    November 24, 2009
    Imacoolkid
    Bit of a dissapointment, not as good as the others. I expected more links to the other films.
  • colaladylovesmovies
    November 23, 2009
    colaladylovesmovies
    it has some cool moments, but could have been better. If this was the last one, they did not go out with a bang.
  • iicalderon04
    November 23, 2009
    iicalderon04
    Best Final Destination since the original. Loved it in 3D.
  • SmunMunn
    November 23, 2009
    SmunMunn
    psikopat bgt ni yang bikin pelem....maksa pulaa
  • 1658
    November 23, 2009
    1658
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