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Final Destination - New Line Platinum Series

Final Destination - New Line Platinum Series

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: imaginative thriller that overdoses on special effects
Review: "Final Destination" is a fairly creepy, moderately entertaining little horror film dedicated to the proposition that, although one may not be able to exactly "cheat" death, one may be able to beat it on its own terms fair and square - provided one can figure out the rules that is.

The movie begins as a group of forty high school students and three of their teachers board a plane departing from JFK on a field trip to Paris. Immediately before takeoff, one student receives a premonition that the plane will explode moments after becoming airborne, a vision that manages to get himself and several other passengers safely off before the inevitable occurs. But as Alex and his fellow survivors soon discover, Death is not to be avoided quite so easily, as each becomes the target of a systematic plan of elimination.

If the details of the initial premise sound familiar, it is probably because they match almost perfectly those surrounding the downing of Flight 103 back in 1996. Waving aside questions of taste and propriety - is it really right to use the details of a real life tragedy as fodder for a silly little horror flick? - let us concede that "Final Destination" taps into some pretty basic fears about the uncertain, random and arbitrary nature of Death. The idea itself is enough to make us all stop and ponder the truth of our mortality and the truly tenuous thread by which we daily cling to this thing we call life. But like so many horror films in the modern era, the premise is better than the execution. The various deaths depicted herein become so choreographed and preposterous in their details that they actually end up diluting some of their own ability to disturb and terrify. Indeed, the more elaborate and high tech the death scenes become, the less creepy they seem. We become bemused and detached when we should be cringing and empathetic. Death simply has to work too hard in some of these scenes and the strain shows.

Thus, for all its originality of premise, the film, by making Death seem like nothing more disturbing than a conventional special effects showoff, robs Man's greatest enemy of his awe-inspiring and overwhelming power and sting!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Don't Take It Too Seriously And You'll Enjoy It
Review: "Final Destination" is a pretty good flick considering that it's filed under the "Teen Slasher" title. The concept of Death coming after those who have thwarted their fate seems fairly original to me. I don't recall any other movie using this concept.

As most of you probably know, the story starts out with a young man(Devon Sawa) having a vision of Flight 180, the flight he and his classmates happen to be on, exploding into a ball of flames. He freaks out, gets himself and some of the other students and a teacher booted off of the plane and shortly thereafter, his vision becomes truth. He's considered a prime suspect for planting a bomb on the plane.

One by one, however, his classmates begin to die in some rather unorthodox ways. The agents tailing Sawa happen to notice that he has been around when most of these deaths occur, further incriminating him. Sooner or later Sawa, Ali Larter, and a few of the other surviviors realize that Death is hunting them down in the order that they should have died in the plane explosion.

This is where the train goes off the tracks. The plot gets a little bit loopy and things get rather silly as Death picks off the survivors one by one. The death scenes are rather original, and some of them make you cringe for a second as Death narrowly misses his victims. Of course, you have to wonder how Death can pull off a plane explosion, but can't manhandle a few puny high schoolers after they avert him the first time around. Just don't take this movie too seriously, and I'm sure everything will be okay. Look beyond the absurdities and you'll love every minute of it.

Overall, this isn't a bad flick. The story, though somewhat absurd, is original and the pacing of the film is perfect. The acting is solid, though Sawa seems a little bit stiff compared to the others. Ali Larter does a fine job as the loner who is the first to believe in Sawa's character. All of the death scenes are morbidly entertaining. I'm sure everyone has heard about the scene with the bus. If not, keep your eye out for it. It's one of the quickest, most violent deaths I've seen in the past few years. Also, look for the guy from "Candyman."

Recommended to teen slasher fans who like gore more than actual scares and anyone who just wants a neat popcorn flick to kill a little time. This one is entertaining enough to fill that need.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Nice try but no cigar
Review: "Final destination" starts out very fine indeed! From the ominous title-sequence, accompanied by Shirley Walkers effective score, until the inventive first murder, the atmosphere is thick with foreboding and threatening omens. And the airplane accident must surely be the most terrifying ever to be put onto celluloid! Scary stuff, to be sure!!! However, the movie goes downhill from there. The murders become more and more unconvincingly contrived (the bus-accident is a very well handled shock, though) and characters, grown-ups as well as adolescents, behave increasingly silly. Anyway, it's well above average for this kind of horror-thriller even if the final isn't as surprising as the filmmakers probably intended. Competent all the way with an unusual premise to begin with and, above all, a very nice surprise from a genre that seemed to have outlived itself after all the latest Screamclones.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Uneven but intriguing horror tale
Review: "Final Destination," directed by James Wong, has an intriguing concept and a strong start. High school student Alex (played by Devon Sawa) has a horrific premonition which is ultimately instrumental in saving the lives of himself and a number of others. But have they cheated death? Or is there an even more horrible fate in store for each of them?

I found "Final Destination" to be an oddly uneven film. Director Wong helps create a genuinely creepy atmosphere; I especially liked the way ordinary household items and actions are invested with an ominous weight. But some aspects of the film struck me as inappropriately humorous, leading me to wonder if I was watching an intentional spoof or if the filmmakers were just slipping up in moments of ineptitude.

I found the tone of the film inconsistent. Were they trying to create a serious psychological drama in which the viewer is meant to care about the characters, or rather should the viewer view Alex and the others as mere fodder for yet another "slasher"-style horror pic? I was also disappointed by the ending.

One of the best aspects of "Final Destination" is the strong work by its ensemble cast, which includes Kerr Smith and Kristen Cloke. Sawa in particular makes a sympathetic leading man. His solid performance carries much of the film; he is definitely a young actor worth following. Give "Destination" a try.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Freaky and clever
Review: 'Final Destination' is a movie that breaks through almost every cliche ever created from the genres of horror/suspense/thriller/drama. It is the story of a 17-year old named Alex Browning (played vicariously by Devon Sawa, who I see going somewhere) who forsees the plane of his senior class trip exploding before takeoff. Him and a few others are ejected from the plane, which they saw explode from inside the terminal, and are then marked because they had cheated death. Alex tries to solve the pattern so they can cheat death again.

I can't say much about this film because absolutely *nothing* can be ruined. The deaths scenes are fascinating and extremely elaborate. The squeamish and/or faint of heart should probably steer clear of this one. The fear of the characters seems real, because they all are sure that one will die next but never who or how. How it happens is unbelievably clever every single time. Sometimes you think you can see the method of end coming, but you will more than likely be wrong, which is the beautiful part. The suspense is nerve wracking and heart skipping, and sometimes so surprising that I am still shocked.

Besides the suspense, this film also offers a deeply investigated look into the world of death. Alex tries to decipher the pattern and attempt to stop death from taking the next person. It is an intelligent premise, and is presented with impressive results. 'Final Destination' is not a feel good movie, but does succeed as a crowd pleaser because of its ability to astound and be staggeringly original.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: BOR-
Review: -ING. OK if you have nothing else to watch. Starts out fairly interestingly, ends up sludge. Tounge in cheek or not, it's just not a good film. Nothing you haven't seen before, and done better. Part 2 is a little slicker.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Very Cool Premise which turns into a not so good movie!
Review: ... I have to say that I was expecting so much more from this film. The idea of death catching up to those who have avoided it makes a really cool premise for a movie, but in the end it just doesn't live up to my expectations. The acting is rather weak and the ending is pretty bad as well. If you don't take the movie too serious you probably will enjoy much more. I will admit the death seens were wickedly cool, but that still doesn't make up for a movie with so much potential that just fails to deliver.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: interesting....
Review: ... It is a very interesting idea for a movie plot, but you can't take it too seriously.
... I will say that the opening crash scene got to me. It was almost TOO realistic. Much of the movie was humorous, but it was still very well done. It got the goosebumps going a few times and the methods of death were always fresh and different (although I figured out the train one before it happened, most didn't reveal what the ultimate form of death would be-you just knew that something was going to happen).

I think it is worth a viewing, but expect some corny parts. The ending was more funny than scary. You'll see it coming.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Picture this...
Review: ...water is moving, of its own volition, towards you, creating a slick surface that will cause you to slip and hang yourself in the shower. Having gotten that out of the way, I have to say that this movie was nowhere as bad as I thought it would be. In fact, it was pretty amusing. Interesting premise, but the ending was bad. Not funny bad. Just bad. Oh, and Ryan, if you're reading this, you can just DROP DEAD!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not too bad, but...
Review: ..Final Destination is a film, with teens yet again, falling under the knife ('scuse the pun). Even that fact ruined it for me, always bloody teenagers getting murdered! The only thing that saves this film is the twists and the fact there is no serial killer just fate/death pure and simple, which works well, but how many more 'Scream, teeny-bop slashers' are they going to make? It gets boring. And as for this film being a make-u-jump kind of film - what the hell? Ghostbusters made me jump out of my skin more than this overrated movie. One of it's better moments comes when we meet good 'ol Candy man Tony Todd as a coroner. However with this film, don't expect too much.


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