Directed by James Wong. Written by Wong, Glen Morgan and Jeffrey Reddick. Starring Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Seann William Scott, Tony Todd, Amanda Detmer and Brendan Fehr.
Plot: after a group of students and their teacher avoid dying in a plane crash, Death starts to hunt them down one by one
The Final Destination franchise is one of my favorites in all of horror. Not certain why. I’m not particularly afraid of death. I don’t LOVE gore. And I hate the idea that there’s no way to win this little game of fate that all these people find themselves trapped in. And yet, I love the movies. I mean, the original is obviously way better than say, the 4th installment, but I recommend them all.
In the first movie a boy named Alex (Sawa) has a premonition that the plane he and his friends are on is going to crash. He warns everyone to get off, but only a select few do. They live. The rest, well, they blow up in the sky. After that, the survivors, some dealing better than others, start to die. It’s the ultimate motive. Death is coming for us all eventually. Some of us will die tomorrow. Some 50 years from now. In that way, the premise is sort of realistic. Being perfectly honest, 16 years ago we went to see this movie in the theaters with our mother and our cousin. On the way home, our cousin was so bothered by it that he wouldn’t put his seat belt on. He just held it across his body. It made no sense, but he was generally scared and it was genuinely humorous. Maybe that’s why these movies hold a special place with me.
When? How? Why? Who knows? Will your seat belt being on save you or will it be the thing that traps you in a car on fire?
Also, these movies are great for parties. Drinking games abound. For this one, I recommend a sip of something sour every time someone says the word ‘death’.
I give the movie a 90/100. DJ an 86. Favorite death sequence: the one with the bus. It’s so simple and yet so shocking. Totally didn’t see it coming the first time I watched it.
***I wish they had left some of the deleted scenes in the movie. Especially the ones that furthered Alex and Clear’s relationship.
I suppose I could list my favorite movies here, but instead I'll give you a strange glimpse into what makes me TaraRomero.
1. I met George Romero. He was the kindest and sweetest man. He talked to me for longer than he should have with the line getting longer. He also held my hand. And when he noticed the ladybug I have tattooed on my wrist, he said he liked it and asked me it's name. Till then, it had not had a name. Now, I call him George.
2. I love stickers. All stickers. I just adore them. I even ask for stickers for Christmas! As a matter of fact, the birthday that just past, every member of my immediate family gave me sticker packs as gifts. Affordable and extremely appreciated.
3. I have never put much stock in astrology or horoscopes, but I LOVE the magic of the MBTI. Omg. I am an INFP and it actually sounds just like me. Introverted mostly. Creative always. Heart before head and not the most logical. Totally me! For better or worse.
4. It's no surprise I count horror so high up on the list of things that make me, me. However, it's so within my soul that I was part of the Horror Club in college. Interesting bunch. And even took a Horror Lit class as an elective. I got an A.
5. Coffee always makes me happy. Always. I'm particularly fond of caramel macchiatos. But I'll drink black coffee if it's the only thing available.
6. I hate shock for the sake of shock and endings that depress me. I always mention the movies Within (2016) and the Eli Roth produced, written and starred in, Aftershock (2012), as proof of this distate I have. I abhor the idea that just because I like horror, some people think I'd actually praise a movie that lets you think the "Final Girl" just made it through the night, only to slap her in the face with a tsunami.
7. We are big time animal people. I mean, if I could, I'd have an elephant, a bear, a zebra, a penguin, an otter and a meerkat, living with me. Seriously though. We have 2 dogs right now and 2 cats. Both cats we picked up when they each came to our front door hungry. And both dogs we got from 2 different sets of neighbors. Both who, unfortunately, don't know how to care for pets long-term. But they're happy and healthy now!!
8. Revisiting my love of horror, one of the above cats, my cat, is a little black guy named Church. Because Pet Sematary. His middle name is even Pascow. To give credit where credit's due, the name was DJ's idea. But he loves horror too!
9. I'm big into art. Along with movie posters and an Anne Frank quote, I have some actual paintings on my wall. I really think Dali paints beautifully when he wants to. And if I don't get to see Michaelangelo's Pieta in person some day, I will be very disappointed.
10. Lastly, I find Emily Dickinson's poetry intriguing. I took an elective course about her as well. But do you know I injected horror even there? I was given a poem to dissect and I picked one on death, of course. Then, I researched old "Death Photos" and even printed out copies for everyone in the class. They were so interested in looking at them that it stopped them from all looking at me, and I was able to deal quite well with my stage fright. Haha
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