Final Destination

This teen scare flick is a cut above most others. Here, it is not some crazed killer which does away with most of the cast but, rather, the fickle finger of fate that selects the next denizen of the great beyond. The movie starts off happily enough with a class of high school seniors about to depart for Paris. Once they board the plane, our main man, Alex, cannot quite overcome his fear of flying, as he has a premonition that the plane is going to blow up upon takeoff. His hysteria is such that he, as well as four other students, is escorted off the plane, accompanied by faculty members, one of whom returns to re-board the plane. No sooner does the plane take off, it blows up in mid air. It seems that fate has snatched these lucky individuals out of death's clutches...or has it? Their relief, at having escaped being blown up on the plane, turns to terror, as it appears that fate will not have them cheat death. The lengths that these young people go to evade fate, and the steps that fate takes to hunt them down one by one, makes for a crafty and clever thriller. Teens and adults alike will enjoy this flick. more

"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. more

I went in hoping very much to like this film, and I came out being surprised that I actually did. A group of students bound for Paris leave the plane when one has a terrible vision, only to find that it comes true a few moments after takeoff. Oh, but death doth not allowth such an easy route out. Soon the ole Grim Reaper begins to hunt down each of these students one by one and kill them off. Wow, a slasher flick with the ultimate slasher, huh? Yep, and it works beautifully. The film starts off with the best plane crash perhaps ever seen on screen and is quickly followed by two very original death scenes. And well, then it kinda goes downhill. What started out clever becomes cliché, and the last few deaths are not nearly as original as the first. The ending is also very lame and seems more tacked on for sequel purposes than for a "complete film." Still, even with those flaws, and the semi-bad acting, the dialogue shines and the movie itself blazes. Final Destination has its flaws, but in spite of them it ranks as one of the most entertaining films so far this year. Go see it, but beware if John Denver comes on the radio... more

Playful and energized enough to keep an audience guessing. more

So grim and humorless that the first half almost sinks into silliness. more

A mediocre fright-fest. more

OK premise quickly deteriorates into a silly, badly acted slasher movie -- minus the slasher.

Generates a respectable amount of suspense and takes a few unexpected turns while covering familiar territory. more

Disturbing--if less sophisticated than the best SF (science fiction)-horror TV. more

Serviceable enough, if you come to it with sufficiently modest expectations. more