FINAL
DESTINATION ($25) is a very cool and intelligent little horror movie
that got snubbed by the critics because of its genre affiliation. With
X-FILES alumnus James Wong and Glen Morgan behind the camera, FINAL
DESTINATION proves to be genuinely creepy and definitely unlike the
typical teen horror flick. Instead of the usual crazed killer slicing
up sexually promiscuous teens, death itself comes to stalk the protagonists
of FINAL DESTINATION.
FINAL
DESTINATION stars Devon Sawa as Alex Browning, a high school student
who is about to embark with a group of his classmates on a school trip
to Paris. Alex uneasily boards flight 180, however prior to takeoff, he
has a very detailed premonition that the airplane will explode shortly
after leaving the ground. Scared out of his wits, Alex causes a commotion
on the plane, which ends with him, five of his classmates and one teacher
being ejected from the aircraft. Unfortunately, Alex’s horrifying premonition
comes true and flight 180 explodes into a fireball moments after takeoff.
The survivors are horrified and become somewhat wary of Alex, since he
predicted the plane’s demise. Alex’s premonition also brings him under
the scrutiny of the FBI, although the agency unsure what part he may have
played in the destruction of flight 180. The preliminary investigation
indicates that the explosion was an accident, which seems to clear Alex
as a suspect with the FBI. However, things take an unexpected turn when
the survivors of the flight 180 disaster begin dying in bizarre and grisly
way. Alex comes to see the deaths as more than mere coincidence, and then
begins to realize that none of them were meant to leave flight 180 before
takeoff. Although death is a force that no one should be able to escape,
Alex is able to figure out death’s plan, which gives him and his fellow
survivors at least a chance of sidestepping the Grim Reaper.
Director/co-writer
James Wong creates an uneasy tension throughout FINAL DESTINATION,
which make the audience hold on for dear life, as they take this little
joyride with death at the wheel. The film’s special effects are pretty
intense, especially the premonition sequence aboard the aircraft- this
frightening sequence will definitely haunt you the next time you take
a flight anywhere. FINAL DESTINATION also features solid performances
from a cast that includes Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Kristen Cloke, Daniel
Roebuck, Roger Guenveur Smith, Chad Donella, Seann William Scott, Amanda
Detmer and Brendan Fehr. Look for well-known genre personality Tony Todd
in a wonderfully morbid little cameo.
New
Line Home Video does it again with their Platinum Series DVD release of
FINAL DESTINATION- the movie looks and sounds fantastic! FINAL
DESTINATION is framed at 1.85:1 and the DVD is enhanced for playback
on 16:9 displays. The transfer is very sharp and very well defined, with
absolutely no signs of blemishes or film grain during the presentation.
Even the nighttime sequences are rendered with astonishing detail and
clarity. Flesh tones are very natural looking, while the rest of the hues
appear quite vivid. Blood reds and fiery yellows and oranges are immaculately
reproduced, without a hint of smearing. Even the deep greens of the trees
look very impressive. Blacks are absolutely perfect, plus the image displays
excellent contrast and tremendous depth. Flawless authoring keeps digital
compression artifacts from marring this supernaturally good video presentation.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack is first class all the way. There
is aggressive sound effects usage during the film’s climatic moments,
which takes advantage of all the discrete channels. Separations are as
clear and wide in the split surrounds, as it is in the forward soundstage.
Dialogue reproduction is crisp and precise, with none of the actors voices
ever seeming muffled by any of the other sounds in the mix. Bass is very
full and authoritative; enhancing all the crashes and explosions found
in the film. Shirley Walker’s creepy musical score is really a winner,
and is one of the things that will help to make FINAL DESTINATION
a minor genre classic a few years down the road. Fortunately here, the
sound mixers recognized the power of Walker’s score, so the sound is balanced
to keep the music in the forefront, without it overwhelming any other
aspect of the soundtrack. An English Dolby Surround soundtrack is also
encoded onto the DVD, as are English subtitles.
FINAL
DESTINATION features appropriately
weird, but cool, interactive menus that utilize animation and sound for
the interface. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene
selection and set up features, as well as a nice array of supplements.
FINAL DESTINATION includes two running audio commentaries, the
first features director/co-writer James Wong, co-writer/producer Glen
Morgan, editor James Coblentz, and co-writer Jeffrey Reddick, while the
second track features actors Devon Sawa, Kerr Smith, Chad Donella and
Kristen Cloke. Both commentaries have their merits; the first covers the
technical side of the production, while the second is a very loose and
funny look back on the making of the film. FINAL DESTINATION also
features a third isolated soundtrack, this one being Shirley Walker’s
impressive musical score in 5.1 channel surround. Between musical passages,
Ms. Walker also has the opportunity to offer fans a bit of commentary
featuring her own insights into the movie and musical scoring. Also included
on the DVD is a very interesting featurette that takes a look at how the
test screening process, ultimately changed FINAL DESTINATION from
the form the filmmakers envisioned to the final cut that appeared in movie
theaters. Another featurette takes a look at a real live psychic, whose
own premonitions have helped the police solve, a number of cases. There
are a number of deleted scenes from FINAL DESTINATION presented
on the DVD, including the original ending of the film. This footage is
also featured in the test screening featurette. There are two interactive
games on the DVD, one of which called "Death Clock" will creep
out more sensitive individuals. A theatrical trailer and cast filmographies
fill out the supplements. FINAL DESTINATION is also DVD-ROM enabled
and will allow those with a properly configured PC to read the film’s
screenplay and access a copy of the film’s original web site from the
disc.
FINAL
DESTINATION is creepy horror entertainment that genre fans are certain
to enjoy, plus the DVD looks and sounds frighteningly good. Definitely
recommended to anyone who likes to be scared, without having his or her
intelligence insulted.
FINAL
DESTINATION ($25) is a very cool and intelligent little horror movie
that got snubbed by the critics because of its genre affiliation. With
X-FILES alumnus James Wong and Glen Morgan behind the camera, FINAL
DESTINATION proves to be genuinely creepy and definitely unlike the
typical teen horror flick. Instead of the usual crazed killer slicing
up sexually promiscuous teens, death itself comes to stalk the protagonists
of FINAL DESTINATION.
FINAL
DESTINATION stars Devon Sawa as Alex Browning, a high school student
who is about to embark with a group of his classmates on a school trip
to Paris. Alex uneasily boards flight 180, however prior to takeoff, he
has a very detailed premonition that the airplane will explode shortly
after leaving the ground. Scared out of his wits, Alex causes a commotion
on the plane, which ends with him, five of his classmates and one teacher
being ejected from the aircraft. Unfortunately, Alex’s horrifying premonition
comes true and flight 180 explodes into a fireball moments after takeoff.
The survivors are horrified and become somewhat wary of Alex, since he
predicted the plane’s demise. Alex’s premonition also brings him under
the scrutiny of the FBI, although the agency unsure what part he may have
played in the destruction of flight 180. The preliminary investigation
indicates that the explosion was an accident, which seems to clear Alex
as a suspect with the FBI. However, things take an unexpected turn when
the survivors of the flight 180 disaster begin dying in bizarre and grisly
way. Alex comes to see the deaths as more than mere coincidence, and then
begins to realize that none of them were meant to leave flight 180 before
takeoff. Although death is a force that no one should be able to escape,
Alex is able to figure out death’s plan, which gives him and his fellow
survivors at least a chance of sidestepping the Grim Reaper.
Director/co-writer
James Wong creates an uneasy tension throughout FINAL DESTINATION,
which make the audience hold on for dear life, as they take this little
joyride with death at the wheel. The film’s special effects are pretty
intense, especially the premonition sequence aboard the aircraft- this
frightening sequence will definitely haunt you the next time you take
a flight anywhere. FINAL DESTINATION also features solid performances
from a cast that includes Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Kristen Cloke, Daniel
Roebuck, Roger Guenveur Smith, Chad Donella, Seann William Scott, Amanda
Detmer and Brendan Fehr. Look for well-known genre personality Tony Todd
in a wonderfully morbid little cameo.
New
Line Home Video does it again with their Platinum Series DVD release of
FINAL DESTINATION- the movie looks and sounds fantastic! FINAL
DESTINATION is framed at 1.85:1 and the DVD is enhanced for playback
on 16:9 displays. The transfer is very sharp and very well defined, with
absolutely no signs of blemishes or film grain during the presentation.
Even the nighttime sequences are rendered with astonishing detail and
clarity. Flesh tones are very natural looking, while the rest of the hues
appear quite vivid. Blood reds and fiery yellows and oranges are immaculately
reproduced, without a hint of smearing. Even the deep greens of the trees
look very impressive. Blacks are absolutely perfect, plus the image displays
excellent contrast and tremendous depth. Flawless authoring keeps digital
compression artifacts from marring this supernaturally good video presentation. 
The Dolby Digital 5.1 channel soundtrack is first class all the way. There
is aggressive sound effects usage during the film’s climatic moments,
which takes advantage of all the discrete channels. Separations are as
clear and wide in the split surrounds, as it is in the forward soundstage.
Dialogue reproduction is crisp and precise, with none of the actors voices
ever seeming muffled by any of the other sounds in the mix. Bass is very
full and authoritative; enhancing all the crashes and explosions found
in the film. Shirley Walker’s creepy musical score is really a winner,
and is one of the things that will help to make FINAL DESTINATION
a minor genre classic a few years down the road. Fortunately here, the
sound mixers recognized the power of Walker’s score, so the sound is balanced
to keep the music in the forefront, without it overwhelming any other
aspect of the soundtrack. An English Dolby Surround soundtrack is also
encoded onto the DVD, as are English subtitles.
FINAL
DESTINATION features appropriately
weird, but cool, interactive menus that utilize animation and sound for
the interface. Through the menus, one has access to the standard scene
selection and set up features, as well as a nice array of supplements.
FINAL DESTINATION includes two running audio commentaries, the
first features director/co-writer James Wong, co-writer/producer Glen
Morgan, editor James Coblentz, and co-writer Jeffrey Reddick, while the
second track features actors Devon Sawa, Kerr Smith, Chad Donella and
Kristen Cloke. Both commentaries have their merits; the first covers the
technical side of the production, while the second is a very loose and
funny look back on the making of the film. FINAL DESTINATION also
features a third isolated soundtrack, this one being Shirley Walker’s
impressive musical score in 5.1 channel surround. Between musical passages,
Ms. Walker also has the opportunity to offer fans a bit of commentary
featuring her own insights into the movie and musical scoring. Also included
on the DVD is a very interesting featurette that takes a look at how the
test screening process, ultimately changed FINAL DESTINATION from
the form the filmmakers envisioned to the final cut that appeared in movie
theaters. Another featurette takes a look at a real live psychic, whose
own premonitions have helped the police solve, a number of cases. There
are a number of deleted scenes from FINAL DESTINATION presented
on the DVD, including the original ending of the film. This footage is
also featured in the test screening featurette. There are two interactive
games on the DVD, one of which called "Death Clock" will creep
out more sensitive individuals. A theatrical trailer and cast filmographies
fill out the supplements. FINAL DESTINATION is also DVD-ROM enabled
and will allow those with a properly configured PC to read the film’s
screenplay and access a copy of the film’s original web site from the
disc.
FINAL
DESTINATION is creepy horror entertainment that genre fans are certain
to enjoy, plus the DVD looks and sounds frighteningly good. Definitely
recommended to anyone who likes to be scared, without having his or her
intelligence insulted.
