I’m a big fan of the Final Destination movies.  Having Death track down those trying to cheat him isn’t a new concept, but the first two films were unique and creative enough that they won me over instantly.  Part 3 was decent, but I could tell that by the third installment the series had about run its course.   Apparently the film executives realized this as well since they brought back David R. Ellis, the director of Part 2, and attempted to  breathe some new life in the series by not only making it 3-D but entitling the film THE Final Destination, implying this would be the fans’ last chance to see this fun series in the theater.

One reason I enjoyed these films was because of the creative (and typically very bloody) kills in the series.  It seemed that the filmmakers took great delight in devising fun and interesting ways for each character to be killed.  The filmmakers even gave some characters certain fears (like fear of elevators) so that those characters could then be killed by utilizing those particular fears. 

I also liked the decidedly black humor each film contained.  Anytime a film ends with a child being blown up by a grill only to have the child’s burnt arm land on his mother’s plate shows the viewer that these filmmakers know the product they are releasing.  It’s as if they are saying, “Look, we know we aren’t making a film that will be an Oscar-contender, but if we can entertain you for 90 minutes, if we can make you laugh, make you jump, and even make you scream once in a while, then we’re happy.”

Another advantage I thought these movies had were the lovably and laughably over-the-top characters in each film.  Yes, the characters were merely stereotypical caricatures of teens or young adults, but many characters were so outrageously stereotypical (the lovable drug addict, the self-centered bitchy chick, the cocky, horny guy, the smarmy nice guy, the drunk, the racist, and on and on…) it became fun to guess what they would do or say next.  And we rooted for each of the selfish, mean-spirited, and sometimes outright stupid characters to die (well, at least I did).

But as I said before, I felt that the filmmakers were really starting to reach by the third film.  It was still fun, but starting to get old.  So it was that I went into TFD 3-D with a great deal of hope but also a good-sized helping of skepticism.  I hate it when I’m right….

Even though this film had 11 kills (and we get to relive several of them at least two or three times during flashback sequences), which is the most deaths in any of this series of films, generally we don’t get the consistently spectacular, over-the-top, CGI-designed deaths we are used to.  The film opens at a NASCAR race where we are introduced to our main characters and supported cast.  Of course, one of the characters experiences a premonition and manages to save his friends and a few other characters as well.  The crash at the race track is pretty spectacular but most of the other deaths are fairly standard fare.

As tends to happen with 3-D films, this one seems to be designed around certain set pieces that lend themselves to 3-D images.  I think this generally detracts from the film because it takes the viewer out of the moment—instead of just watching the film, I found myself trying to identify the next 3-D “trick”.  Now I’ve seen plenty of 3-D films lately—mostly kids’ films with my young daughter—and many of them have excellent 3-D effects throughout the film.  I literally got queasy in the film “Up” when the audience was allowed to peek over the edge of the floating house.  But effects like that feel real, while designing unique set pieces around the effect itself feels contrived.  When pipes pop up, or large, sharp pieces of wood are sticking out, it takes the viewer out of the scene because it is so obvious what will happen next.

I also felt like the sequences leading up to a character’s death had become very contrived.  Maybe I’ve just grown tired of the elaborate sequences of supposed coincidences that build up to set death in motion.  In the first films, I thought these sequences were fun, imaginative, and creative; in this installment they felt workmanlike.  Of course they are always ridiculous (you’re telling me that a paring knife can fall off a kitchen counter with enough force to impale someone’s hand to the floor?) so I’m not complaining about the realism.  It just seemed that this time, the writers used whatever they came up with first instead of trying to be unique and creative. 

The story was also the weakest of the four films.  At least with the first three, there is some attempt to have the characters do some exploration before finding an explanation for what’s going on.  Here, the two leads Google odd deaths and conclude that Death is following them.  No real backstory, no real connection to the other films, no recurring characters to help explain things.  Just a quick Internet search that’s not even shown.  Director Ellis seems to know that this film is nothing but a quick cash-in that will ultimately end the series.  It is listed as 82 minutes, but if you take six minutes off for end credits, the film runs more like 76 minutes, hardly a feature-length film in this day and age of Tarantino and Cameron epics.

One advantage this film had over the others is that Tony Todd’s character of the mortuary attendant is gone.  I never really got those sequences.  I thought they were poorly done and fairly confusing and I felt like it was just a way to get a minor “name” into the film.  I also never really thought Tony Todd was a very good actor anyway, so for me having this character missing only helped the film.

Overall, this film is the weakest of the series and should ultimately end the franchise.  While there are still some pretty spectacular CGI effects and a few fun deaths, this film pales in comparison to the first two installments.  If you are a completist like I am, wait to get this one until you can buy it used or in the $5 bin at Wal-Mart.