Final Destination 3 (2006)

Not worth the money...

I seen this movie in the theater, and I have to say it was a big disappointment. I am a big fan of the first 2 Final Destination movies for 2 reasons. 1 being that there's never really been a movie like this before, and 2 the sequel really took what was in the first movie and kept its original integrity, as well as added something new to it. I like when movies do that. I look forward to sequels only if they start treading new ground, and come up with clever ways to make the story keep going.

This movie has none of those qualities. This is a movie sequel just for the sake of doing a sequel. Which in New Line's minds (I happen to love New Line) is a big dollar sign. I think if they would have taken their time with this movie and developed the right script and not rushed it out until it was something special, this would have been about 50 times better than the movie you see on this dvd. I look back on movies New Line has made in the past like Nightmare On Elm Street, and I think they did a good job. But this movie isn't worth the disc it's printed on. They're ruining the franchise with this garbage, much like they did with SAW. Saw is another good example of an amazing first film, and how they ruined it with sequels. This movie has turned into a complete gorefest, which I can't stand. I like horror movies, but not for Gore. I like em for just sheer terror, and darkness.

Take a movie like Halloween for instance. There's no blood or gore, the movie is about the unconscious mind, and about the setting. That is what makes the movie creepy, not how many people get killed, or how brutal they get killed. To me what made Final Destination creepy was the fact that you knew Death was coming, but didn't know how or when it was going to take someone, so you were on the edge of your seat. This movie you pretty much know when everyone is gonna die, and even have a good idea when.

I think they took a step back with this one because #1 was completely original, and then #2 was the next step, and started treading new ground. Then they stopped that momentum dead by doing a movie with no story to it whatsoever, and just made it about senseless killing. There was no mystery, no storyline to it, no motivation to any of it. You didn't know why these people are dying, so there's nothing really to resolve at the end of the movie because there's no conflict in the movie whatsoever other than death itself. At least in the other 2 they shed some insight into why these people die. That life and death has a master plan, and if you cheat death it will move onto someone else, or come back at you twice as hard.

I hear they're making #4, and honestly I've had enough. I can't stand to see them ruin another good franchise with another crappy sequel. I stopped watching SAW after #2, and I think I will stop watching this one after #3. So I wouldn't recommend this to anyone because I'm disappointed in New Line for ruining the great momentum they had with #1 and #2 with this sad disappointment of a movie.

I do however recommend #1 and #2 in the Final Destination cd because they are masterpieces in the thriller/horror genre. September 27, 2008

My fave of the 3!

It's very unusual that I would like a third in the series the best, but I really do! I love the opening amusement park setting, I can always get the creeps there and so many bad things that can happen in one, it makes perfect sense to start a thiller in one. The funny the is, the characters are the least likable ones, not on in the FD series, but in almost any movie. They were just really broad stereotypes of some diffrent teens about to graduate. You know, snotty girls, jocks, emos, etc. I swear you almost cheer for them to get killed, and wow do they get killed in cool and new ways! I really loved the ending, it's how it should be considering the first 2 movies. I also like the interactive features, and some of the stuff on the other disk. If you like these movies for the orignal death scenes, not character development, you'll enjoy this entry. July 30, 2008

Love Rollercoaster, Ride On It.

Let's face it, roller coasters are one of those terrifying thrills that many of us have a attraction/aversion to on a primal kind of level. It makes the first 15 minutes of "Final Destination 3" truly scary in a white knuckle kind of horror way. It is easily the best thing about this movie, and the bonus disc shows just how much effort they put into making that tiny sequence as authentic as possible.

Thus, when Wendy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) has her premonition and then starts divining clues from her digital pictures, the blueprint for the very determined force of death offing the survivors (ala the original Final Destination) is in place. FD3 does so with humor and verve (putting the infamous scream from The Ohio Players' "Love Rollercoaster" was a great touch) while devising increasing grisly and freakish ways to kill off the seven survivors. Trust me, you'll want to swear off tanning beds after this one.

The bonus features are what help elevate this DVD to the 4th star. The "Choose Their Fate" option offers both alternative takes and some really funny bonus clips (Frankie Cheeks' in particular) and a cool documentary about the "Dead Teenager Movie," featuring Roger Ebert. For a thrill ride movie, it takes a good perspective on itself. June 16, 2008

Little originality, but who cares?

In my opinion, the original "Final Destination" was one of the best horror films to surface in the wave of post-"Scream" horror films that emerged in the late 1990's. The idea of a group of teenagers "cheating death" and then having "death" come back to collect them was a great one and with all of the elaborate death sequences, it was extremely well executed (excuse the pun) too. Evidently, I wasn't the only person out there who thought this, because "Final Destination 3" is essentially just a remake of the first "Final Destination" and why would you remake something if the idea didn't have merit to begin with? Of course, since "Final Destination 3" is just a remake, why bother to watch it at all; why not just re-watch "Final Destination"? The answer to that question depends on why you liked the first film to begin with.

If you are looking for originality of plot, then don't bother with "Final Destination 3". It's not there. This film will just give you a 89 minute feeling of deja vu. However, if you want to see yet another series of gruesome and elaborate death sequences, then you've come to the right place. The death sequences in this instalment are even better than those in the previous two films, and in spite of myself, I found myself eagerly anticipating each new death. Guessing who would be the next victim and how they would die was fun and the 89 minutes of the film literally just vanished, I was so engrossed in it (something which I can't say about many films). I won't give away the details of any of the deaths, since that would spoil the fun, but if that's why you like this series, then you will definitely enjoy this film.
May 28, 2008

A Gory Good Time (3.5 stars)

The first few times I watched FD3 I was pretty skeptical. After the release of FD2 which was pretty subpar compared to the first one, I wasn't expecting a whole lot from the third installment. To my surprise, the producers of the first movie came back to do FD3, plus they brought in some good actors to which added a lot more depth to the characters.

While FD3 doesn't veer from the typical storyline of the FD franchise, it does dispatch the characters in new and oftentimes in a "graphic novel" way. Moreover, the end of this one tops the other two movies as well.

Overall FD3 is a movie to have a lot of fun with (if you're a thriller/horror fan). May 25, 2008

More reviews at Amazon.com ...