Like A Horror Ride! -- Final Destination 5 Movie Review

Potato On the Go:

More than ten years ago, the first Final Destination hit the globe and brought us a new kind of slasher movie!  I was hooked with it because the plot was quite new and something unique.  I was curious and excited then to know how the characters can really defy the featured antagonist in the film, which is, actually invincible!  How can you ever beat destiny?  How can you go against nature?  =)  Unfortunately though, the rest of the sequels were not as spectacular as the first one.  I didn't know if they just saturated the basic plot framework or the first was just really a top comparison to begin with.  But the new Final Destination 5 in 3D from Warner Bros. brought back the glory of the franchise!

Directed by Steven Quale and written by Eric Heisserer, Final Destination 5 tells us that death is just as omnipresent as ever.  It is unleashed after Sam's (Nicholas D' Angelo) premonition saves his work colleagues from a terrifying suspension bridge collapse. But this group of unsuspecting souls, which include his best friend Peter (Miles Fisher) and girlfriend Molly (Emma Bell) was never supposed to survive, and, in a terrifying race against time, the ill-fated group frantically tries to discover a way to escape Death’s sinister agenda.

First and foremost, I would like to say that I really enjoyed the movie!  It's been a while since I've seen and and has been satisfied with a film of the same genre.  The movie experience with my movie blogger friends was just amazing.  We were like kids who just took off our career hats and enjoyed the movie!  We shouted, we laughed, we punched and pushed each other!  Although watching the movie took all our energy, it was still an amazing movie time!  =D

The story took the same route as the original film, a bunch of people who survived an accident and escaped death but were haunted by their destiny.  One of the main differentiating factors is how the film established each character and why each one's eventual death happened and became relevant to the story.  The writer was able to effectively play up the elements of the film leaving the audience with no surprises why an event or accident is actually happening.  For example, a character who had concerns with her sight all throughout the film met her fate because of... eye related reasons!  =) Of course, I am not giving justice to what happened to every character but I found it creative how their lives are weaved in to every element of the film.

The 3D technology also was real huge factor in making the audience sigh and scream all throughout the movie.  You really have to shout it out to take out the fear!  If not, you might just end up experiencing chest pains with all the never ending suspense brought by the film!  It just showed each death in realistic gory details!  Not all will like that but for people who love the fear, thrill and suspense, this just brings movie viewing to the next level!  =D

And to top it all, I like how the film ended.  I won't reveal more of it but to give you a little clue, the plot is cyclic and spans several years.  There are just minor inconsistencies though, just take a look at the mobile phones used and analyze it at the end of the film.

Acting wise, I just want to see more conviction in Nicholas D' Angelo's face in some of his scenes and a more realistic expression for Miles Fisher.  The first is too controlled while the latter is too acted. 

Peter's transformation also lacks build up.  For me, the burst of emotion is just too sudden.  A few more establishing shots could have helped convince me on his change of attitude.

Of course, there is no redeeming value in the movie or justice in the life's characters.  Well, the characters' struggles in the movie could tell us how we should value our lives, and savor every moment of it.  But in totality, it's a suspense thriller, so don't expect anything else but the fun and adventure while watching the film.  (And the logic of course). 

Watching movie is like eating a meal.  Sometimes we like Italian, sometimes we look for Japanese.  Sometimes we crave for anything fried but there are times we stop for soup.  So like in movies, there are moments we go for something artsy, sometimes we choose fantasy.  Sometimes we prefer hard action, and then there are times we fall in love with romantic comedy.  And of course, there are moments we crave for... slasher films!  =D  Well, not because we are just morbid people but there are really instances that we like that carnival or horror ride feeling that will make us play with our fear, scream as loud as we can and then have fun with our friends and the people around us!  And this is what Final Destination 5 brings in to movie goers like us.

From a scale of 1 to 10 claps, I'm giving Final Destination 5 in 3D 7 1/2 claps with a loud scream!  =D  From Warner Bros., the movie opens in theaters on August 24!  Be sure to be with your friends or with someone when you watch the film... to enjoy the movie experience!  =D