Final Destination 3 (2006)

Another batch of people and accidents

From playing on fears of planes to automobiles to here carnivals and even trains--minus Steve Martin--"FD3" picks right back up with a fresh batch of survivors that are going to turn victims for our sadistic viewing pleasure. There's another sight-seeing person--borrowed from the Frank Black "Millennium" template--who has the premonition ability that we all wish we had, as most of us get it in the end only with a stupid grin on our faces by thinking: So, that's how it's going to happen?

"I was having that feeling like deja vu, you know? Except for something that hasn't happened yet," the late teen, Wendy, says after going out with her friends to snap a couple of photos for the yearbook at the local fair, along with to take part in all the seemingly safe rides before stepping out into the real world after high school. She feels off and not just from the smell of carney food and strange atmosphere, but something truly isn't right. All this boils inside her and she eventually freaks after getting a vivid premonition, which causes her to narrowly escape a grim fate along with several "lucky" others that as viewers by now know are only prolonging the inevitable.

Caring for the collective ensemble of characters at this point is not at the front of your mind, as most of 'em aren't even given personalities beyond the surface. They still manage to take their roles somewhat seriously instead of just going through the motions, and that makes it a little less straightforward than it could have ended up being. Similar to the template of the first two films, a gal and a guy--this time the boyfriend of Wendy's lost friend named Kevin--have to analyze her photos that came with a few clues as to what's in store for those that escaped Death's clutches. Of course, the others don't believe it, as they think it's just a coincidence, which the audience--with hands rubbed diabolically together--knows that their unwilling ability to accept the facts is only going to perpetuate the pileup of bodies.

We live in a world where not everything is secure and foolproof. Essentially every waking day is a risk and the message here is that you might as well not know when your time is up or how it's going to happen as it comes with extreme anxiety and paranoia. Think less along the lines of nail bitting and sweating at the brow and more closer to a homeless man with a crack addiction walking through Harlem with a C note in his pocket. Sometimes it feels like there's a little less tact and subtley involved and it kind of takes away from any building tension but this still manages to deliver a sudden, shocking gory depiction when the victim finally gets it. Because let's face it, they did piss off Death and after all we're made mostly of water and all those sharp and heavy objects that we've constructed in the modern day came back to bite us in ways we never expected.

"FD3" plays on the whole "safe danger" aspect we get so used to, where something is done so many times that you accept that there's no real threat. That optimistic phrase you always remind yourself about: What's the worst that could happen? Comes with a few gruesome and somewhat creative answers for the next time some person spouts that one without thinking ahead. Director/writer James Wong and writer/producer Glen Morgan team up again from the first film. The tone has a little less dark humor and takes itself a little more seriously than the second film, even with some extra time given to think about the after effects of death, such as guilt and denial, even if it's not put in a way that's extremely ponderous stuff. There are some effective scenes, though for the most part this isn't entirely scary as it also has tendency to break itself down and make fun of its very own concept past the point of just being skeptical.

"FD3" isn't exactly producing anything more than "FD2" in that it follows a template that you can rely on rather than goes beyond expectations. The abrupt ending could have used some more work as it fell right into what you thought it was going to do if you've seen the others and by now feels a little cheap. Otherwise this might be an old trick to a new audience if you haven't seen the other films. Though it's still not entirely underwhelming in that they're still working hard at delivering gory and inventive death scenes with pretty teens. Destruction of beauty is always a beautiful thing in itself, don't you think?

Rating: 5/10

Director: James Wong (The One)
Stars: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ryan Merriman, Tony Todd
Link: IMDB

Final Destination (2000)

A slasher in disguise

Apart from some stiffness or misplaced ailment when stepping out of bed in the morning, have you ever had the inkling that there was just something different about that day from others? Not just a fleeting feeling or a sense of change, but a strong emotion that twists and turns your guts because you believe something is going to actually happen of grave consequence? Most die with either a quick surprise or complete numbness when a sudden, freak accident catches them by unawares, though this is a story that swallows up peoples' souls and spits them out on the other side like a revolving assembly line. "Final Destination" involves a young man that takes the premonitions and warning signs seriously and perseveres through paranoia and accepting the unacceptable to not get taken up by cold, dark and incorporeal hands that are just a reach away.

"Live it up Alex, you've got your whole life ahead of you," his dad tells him just before a senior trip with his New York high school pals going to France for the summer. From the night before with an icy chill, to various omens that he picks up on going to the airport for what's supposed to be a fun trip--such as the accident prone, dead-as-a-door-knob John Denver spouting tunes in the restroom--Alex (Devon Sawa) doesn't just pass up on what his anxious nerves tell him. However, if something out there was trying to warn him any more, it might have slapped him in the face because it's everywhere he turns. But then again, most of us are skeptics to the supernatural until we see it with our own eyes and feel it with all of our being, simply because we don't want to look stupid going out on a limb in front of others unless we're positively sure. Alex ends up being right as rain, but dead wrong about the thunder with the forces he's messing with after an accident involving the plane he just got kicked off of with several others from going ballistic from a sweaty nightmare when he dozes off before departing.

Soon enough the safety boards, FBI and media encroach with their questions and speculations. "I got this feeling..this weird feeling," Alex says, because even though he gave a sort of premonition, he still seems just as confused, not to mention lucky as the worried family members arrive to take home their loved ones in one piece. For the seven survivors themselves, the whys and guilt that come with escaping and being that close to death are pouring down, not to mention with anger and confusion directed at the source of rescue. After a supposed accident with someone who survived from the plane, Alex suspects something amiss and that there might be a design or pattern to it all that he feels he can crack. Though after breaking into the funeral home to see if he can rule out foul play he meets the director who gives him a chilling warning, "In death, there are no accidents, no coincidences, no mishaps, and no escapes." So much for the heroic rescue attempt, which instead turns into people desperately running from something that's not entirely in physical form and with the only thing on their side being that the entity plays with a kind of sportsmanship just before its take-them-out-one-by-one game.

Like "X-Files" and "Millennium" that director James Wong and co-writer Glen Morgan were involved on, the lighting is often dark and the camera shots are often panned with dramatic music in the background. Shirley Walker (RIP) provides a score that resembles what she did on "Batman: The Animated Series" with big, bombastic and almost thumping hits, along with higher pitched horns and strings overtop to provide tension. Instead of playing out as a straight horror this also includes some elements of a drama/thriller to lend a hand to the steady but also escalating pacing. There are a lot wink-wink moments here that are going more for the theatrical than the realistic. It gives the audience a knowing-it's-coming point of view that gives this a sadistic sense of humor with a person being completely oblivious themselves. It's a movie that takes the omens over-the-top, but after awhile it makes you start to suspect danger at every little nuance and encroaching path. It makes every movement important and detrimental to the story, which creates a constant red alert atmosphere that can be carried anywhere whether that be night or day or in the safety of your own home: a regular bathroom, an innocent kitchen, just walking down the street. Not many movies are capable of every second being taken up with its concept, not to mention having the audience be an active participant, including Easter eggs throughout.

"Final Destination" isn't without its flaws, as it has some cliches, hit and miss performances to the point of caricature and some of the dialogue isn't perfect. Ali Larter, as Clear, has the most range with a background that gives her strength of character, Seann William Scott overdoes the whole goofy dude thing as Billy, Kerr Smith as Carter performs as a one-note jock and Devon Sawa plays the role of Alex a little spaced out at times. Though the thing this does have down is it provides an engaging cinematic experience and an original concept with a steady tone. This isn't just a straightforward march to the extermination chambers as some unexpected left hooks are thrown to make the fight more interesting. The sequels and spoofs have since capitalized on it to turn it into a recognizable formula but when it was in theaters it was definitely a fresh spin on an old take. This had the last word in a series of teens-on-the-cover-box slashers around 2000. It added a twist to that straightforward convention made infamous in the '80s, as the killer here is practically invisible compared to physical beings that you at least have a combative chance of escaping from like in "Scream," "Halloween" sequels, "Urban Legend" and "I Know What You Did Last Summer." It was more similar to what "Fallen" did but focused on the carnage, and came with less biblical themes and provided a different age demographic.

Rating: 8/10

Director: James Wong (The X-Files writer/producer)
Stars: Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Valerie Lewton, Tony Todd
Link: IMDB