Plot: What’s it about?
Isn’t it frustrating that there are so many creative people out there, yet we’re forced to watch the same (series) of movies time and again? I’d like to think that there are some truly original people who make movies. Well, there are. They just aren’t in charge of the “Final Destination” movies. For anyone that doesn’t know, “Final Destination” came out in 2000 and, as of this writing, has now spawned four sequels. The original did have some recognizable faces in Sean William Scott and Ali Larter. The later movies haven’t really had anyone of note aside from David Koechner and that’s stretching things. Like the “Saw” series of movies, these films have almost become parodies of themselves yet for some reason I keep watching them. Can someone tell me why?
In this latest installment we once again don’t find any departure from the previous movies. We see an imposing bridge and a group on an “office retreat” in a bus that’s attempting to cross that bridge. This office is staffed with good-looking twenty-somethings, but that’s another story I suppose. We see the initial destruction, all of the people die gruesome deaths until the main character, Sam (Nicholas D’Agosto) realizes that he had a premonition. He saves the day but then, as expected, all of the other characters start getting picked off in more grizzly ways because as we all know by now…”you can’t cheat death.” Now without giving too much away, I will say that this movie has one thing the other three sequels didn’t and I won’t ruin what little surprise that the filmmakers have for us in this review.
“Final Destination 5” didn’t break new ground with the series and I don’t really think they even tried. I will admit that it is clever to see some of the ways in which the cast meets their maker and I’m somewhat of a fan of the show “1000 Ways to Die” so maybe they were inspired by that show as well. If I had any thoughts about getting Lasik eye surgery, that’s now a thing of the past! I know I’m bashing the franchise, but yet I have watched all five films. I’d actually forgotten that was even coming out and after the fourth installment was entitled “The Final Destination” you’d assume that there wouldn’t be any more. I guess we assumed incorrectly. Truthfully if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all albeit with different faces and different ways to die. You’ve been warned.
Video: How does it look?
I can complain about the movie all I want, but I have to say that the 2.40:1 AVC HD transfer for “Final Destination 5” is stellar to say the least. The movie was obviously shot with 3D in mind as evidenced by some of the death scenes. I watched the 2D version, so I didn’t get the added experience of a sailboat’s mast skewering a woman or seeing a sheet of metal slicing a man in half. Still, the image is crystal clear, blacks are solid and contrast is as it should be. Fleshtones are a bit on the muted side as everyone seems a bit pale, though I really don’t blame the transfer for this. The “Final Destination” films have always been somewhat akin to “B” movies, but you couldn’t tell form the way this Blu-ray looks. It’s an amazing transfer.
Audio: How does it sound?
One thing that I’ll say for these films is that they know how to effectively use the sound. I’ve never heard blood spatter in surround sound like I have with the “Final Destination” films. The included DTS HD Master Audio soundtrack rocks and the uncompressed track really makes some of the gruesome scenes sound just a bit better. Surrounds are used very effectively and while there’s no problem with dialogue in the movie, I did notice the LFE coming into play a little more than expected. Again, these movies are fun to crank up the volume and hear the little subtle nuances that make this guilty pleasure that much moreso.
Supplements: What are the extras?
We don’t get a lot of supplements with this release, but there are a few featurettes thrown in for good measure. We get one entitled “Full Circle” and as I said in the story section of this review, I won’t give anything away. There are some alternate death scenes as well as a look into the film with some cast and crew interviews. There’s a digital copy of the film as well as Warner’s UV copy in this two disc set.
