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for a movie about teens who cheats death, only to
be pursued by Death itself (taken to manifesting
as an actual unseen force, it appears),
"Final Destination 3" offers up a
5-minute sequence about an hour into things that
defies logic. (Yes, I know how that sounds
considering the movie's premise, but stay with
me...) After having been told that four of the
people who survived the film's central accident
that propels Death's pursuit, two of the survivors
continue to crack jokes, seemingly unconcern that
Yes, it does appear as if Death is re-claiming
those who escaped its icy grip. Really, folks,
even if you have zero belief in all this
supernatural stuff, shouldn't the fact that four
of your fellow survivors have already died in
grisly ways in a matter of days make you somewhat
of a believer? Apparently not.
The writing/directing team of
James Wong and Glen Morgan returns to the
franchise that made them famous, taking over part
three from director David Ellis and writers Mackye
Gruber and Eric Bress. Once again, this latest
installment concerns a gaggle of teens that, on a
senior field trip to an amusement park before
graduation, crashes and burns on a roller coaster
ride. That is, they would have crashed and burned
had young Miss Wendy (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) not
prophesized their death and made such a racket
that it got them kicked off the ride. The ride
does indeed crash as envisioned by Wendy, leaving
Death to seek out the survivors and kill them in
elaborate, "accidental" ways. Ain't
Death a bitch?
If you've seen the original
"Final
Destination" and Ellis' "Final
Destination 2", then part three is more
of the same. The basic premise has remained
intact, which is all for the best, as changing
things up now that the franchise has developed a
cult following would be akin to making Jason
Voorhees stop hacking teens and start singing
Britney Spears songs in one of the umpteenth
"Friday the 13th" sequels.
Which is to say, anyone who bothers to pick up
"Final Destination 3" has no fantasies
about indulging in anything original or
intelligent. The most one can hope for are some
fun, grisly deaths, the occasional chuckles, and
if it's not too much trouble, some thrills and
spills.
Fortunately "Final
Destination 3" does serve up all the
requisite tropes of the franchise, right down to
the sequential killing of the survivors, and the
film's leads figuring out how to cheat Death -- or
so they think. (Hey, if Death was that easy to
cheat, he wouldn't be called Death, now would he?)
Mary Elizabeth Winstead makes for a good heroine,
and is probably over qualified for such a shallow
role. The young woman has real talent, so look for
her in movies that will take full advantage of her
impressive emoting range. Ryan Merriman, as the
male lead, cracks wise throughout the film, and
makes for a fun contrast to Winstead's ultra
serious survivor. In particular, Merriman's
constant quips about how he's going to die provide
some nice chuckles. There is also no forced
romance between the two leads, which is a major
plus in this day and age of formulaic
Hollywood
.
If you are a fan of the
previous two installments, in particular Ellis'
immensely creative "Final Destination
2", then part three makes for a decent
continuation of the series. It's not great, and
certainly doesn't top part two, but it's a tad
better than the original, which at this point
seems tame by comparison to its two follow-ups.
The formula is once again repeated to a
"T", but as mentioned, at this point
kicking the concept to the curb would be akin to
dissing the franchise and its fans, so that's a
no-no.
The deaths this third time
around are not nearly as inventive as part two,
but you do get the sense that Wong and company
have followed in the footsteps of the last film.
The killings are once again quite vicious, as if
Death was really getting sick and tired of high
school teens trying to cheat him out of his
bodycount, and was trying to make a point. I don't
blame the guy. We get a couple of fried corpses,
impalements, decapitations, an encounter with a
nail gun, and my personal favorite, death by
exercise. See? I knew there was a reason I stay
away from the gym.
"Final Destination
3" is a good genre entry, even if its central
"cheat death" gag -- a rollercoaster
that goes horribly awry -- is not nearly as
impressive as it might have appeared on paper. The
death and destruction really doesn't meet the
standards set by Ellis' highway rampage, which is
a shame because the idea of a rollercoaster going
off-track really does have room for some massive
carnage. In any case, with part three having made
a tidy profit at the box office despite being
(predictably) savaged by critics, expect a fourth
installment sometime in 2007. Maybe this time they
can graduate from high school and bring on the
college kids. Or better yet, go the adult route.
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