“Wait a second,” I hear you say, “Wasn’t Final Destination 4 technically called The Final Destination, making it the last film in the series?” Ah, yes it was but this is Hollywood and there will always be some smart producer/writer/director out there who will find away around something ‘small’ like that… and I do have to give them credit, there way of making sure Final Destination 5 happen without pissing off fans of the series is actually quite smart.
This time around it is Sam Lawton (Nicholas D’Agosto – From Prada To Nada, Dirty Girl) who has the fateful premonition. The paper factory worker sees the fateful bridge collapse that would kill nearly all his co-workers as they head for a retreat on a bus. However, by speaking up Sam is able to save his ex-girlfriend, Molly Harper (Emma Bell – Reconstruction, TV’S The Walking Dead), his best friend, Peter (Miles Fisher – My First Claire, TV’S The Single Life), Peter’s girlfriend, Candice (Ellen Wroe – TV’S Huge & Gary Unmarried), co-workers – Olivia (Jacqueline McInnes Wood – Turn The Beat Around, TV’S The Bold And The Beautiful), Issac (P.J. Byrne – Horrible Bosses, TV’S Angry Boys) and Nathan (Arlen Escarpeta – Midnight Son, Brotherhood), as well as his boss, Dennis (David Koechner – Piranha 3DD, A Good Old Fashioned Orgy). As we have come to expect from the series, there is a warning from coroner, William Bludworth (Tony Todd – Dream In American, Jack The Reaper) and then much to the confusion of Agent Jim Block (Courtney B. Vance – The Divide, TV’S The Closer) the survivors start dying.
It is easy to see that Final Destination 5 is going to be a film that frustrates fans of the series. Yes the bridge collapse looks spectacular, yes the writers once again think of some new creative ways to kill people, and yes I’ll even admit that this is one film that feels like it is actually enhanced by 3D (I mean where else can you see ‘eye-blood’ coming at you at graphic speed), but still there are some strong elements to this film that are a real let-down.
Firstly, the beginning is a real drag, it’s the part of the film that screenwriter, Eric Heisserer (A Nightmare On Elm Street, TV’S Stranger Adventures) really got wrong. Sure, the introduction of characters is important, but the opening scene seemed really forced and way too long, especially when you are eagerly awaiting for something big to happen. Secondly, director, Steven Quale (Aliens Of The Deep, Superfire) should have spoken up about the quality of his cast. At times the acting is absolutely laughable and can only really be described as wooden, that ends up being a real shame because horror films have moved well and truly forward in that area over the years, and it seems like a bit of an insult to the franchise when you consider how much better the cast were in the first film.
Still, if you are able to put aside some ordinary acting performances Final Destination 5 does have a lot to offer. The franchise has still managed to remain fresher than it’s evil cousin, Saw and the elements of humour this time around means you can laugh while watching people die… a bit sick, but still a lot of fun. Final Destination 5 is better than most would expect, especially if you love horror.
Year: 2011
Director: Steven Quale
Stars: Nicholas D’Agosto
Classification: MA15+
Runtime: 92 mins
Rating: 
Out on DVD/Blu-Ray from January 11th, 2012