Jeff Loves Horror

 So, I did a ranking a few years ago. But, with a new movie in the franchise, and with the rest of them fresh in my mind, I felt this was the perfect time for an update. #6: The Final Destination: This still stands as the worst of the franchise in just about every aspect. The characters in this movie are probably the worst of the franchise (Mykelti Williamson being the exception). The effects are embarrassingly bad. And with this being the shortest entry, the story is the most barebones of the series  #5: Final Destination 3: While this has never been my favorite of the series, I do think there’s a huge gap between this and last place. Mary Elizabeth Winstead is a solid lead, and easily the best actor in the movie. There’s a couple of all-timer kills here too. Some of the ideas this movie puts forth are never really explored further, which is kind of unfortunate. This one is perfectly fine. #4: Final Destination 5: Compared to three and four, I appreciate the expansion to the ...

Plot Synopsis: College student Stefani Reyes has nightmares every night that involve a time in the 1960s when her grandmother had a premonition of the restaurant she’s visiting on opening night collapsing and killing everyone inside. However, she intervened and managed to save everyone. Positives: My first positive is the new angle this movie takes. Because the grandmother, Iris, managed to save everyone that night. It took Death longer than usual. This allowed a lot of survivors to have families. Because of this, there are entire bloodlines that were never meant to exist. I love the focus this movie puts on family. It allows the characters to have a tight-knit bond. Of course, I also have to talk about Tony Todd. He managed to film his scene before his death. I genuinely appreciate the emotion behind it. The film finally reveals Bludworth’s knowledge behind Death’s design. The reason the moment truly works is that it is a goodbye from Tony Todd himself. Once again, I appreciate the em...

Plot Synopsis: While leaving on a bus heading for a work retreat, Sam has a vision of  the bridge their bus is on collapsing. Sam gets his girlfriend Molly and a few select co-workers off the bus, and off the bridge before it collapses. Before too long, Death comes to collect.  Positives: This movie brings a new addition to the lore, the idea that killing someone if you’re on Death’s list will allow you to swap places. It introduces something of a moral quandary, which you wouldn’t necessarily expect from this franchise. After being relegated to voice work for the third movie and completely absent from the fourth film, it’s nice to have Tony Todd back. His screen presence had been sorely missed. I remember how mind blowing I thought the twist was back in the day, and it honestly still packs a punch. For over a decade, this was the last in the franchise. Had it remained that way, I think it would have worked as sort of a full circle moment. Mixed Aspects: The first thing I want...

Plot Synopsis: While at a NASCAR type event, Nick has a vision of one of the race cars crashing causing a lot of deaths. Realizing what’s about to happen, he gets himself and a select few people out before the crash happens. Of course, Death comes back to collect. Positives: A couple of kills are okay. There’s a scene where a racist guy gets lit on fire while being dragged by his tow truck (all while the radio plays “Why Can’t We Be Friends”). I want to highlight this kill because it’s the one time in the movie where I laugh, and I feel like that’s the intent. The other kill that I kind of like is the guy who ends up at the bottom of the pool. One of the side characters is a security guard played by Mykelti Williamson. Williamson is the best actor in the movie, and it’s not even close. Negatives: All of our main characters suck. At best, they’re bland. At worst, they’re annoying. I mentioned in my review for the third movie, that I felt the writing was weaker than it was in the first t...

Plot Synopsis: During a school field trip to an amusement park, Wendy has a vision of a roller coaster derailing and killing her and several of her classmates. She panics and manages to get herself and a few of her classmates off of the ride before it derails. Death begins coming back to collect. When Wendy starts seeing clues as to how they all die in the pictures she took, she and her best friend’s boyfriend work together to try and put a stop to Death’s plan. Positives: So, I think this movie really benefits from having Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the lead. She gives easily the best performance in this movie. Once again, this third film does a good job playing into the franchise’s dark sense of humor.  Mixed Aspects: The first thing I want to address here is the kills. The tanning bed and the nail gun are both all timer kills for this franchise. One of the things I think hurts some of the kills here is that this is the point where the franchise starts to become reliant on CGI gor...

Plot Synopsis: One year after the events of the first film, Kimberly Corman is going on a road trip with her friends, when she has a vision of a deadly pile up. She manages to prevent a few people from getting on the highway. But, it doesn’t take long before Death starts coming for them one by one. Positives: Starting things off, when talking about these movies, you have to talk about the kills. I appreciate that a lot of the kills in this one are meaner and bloodier. I also love this movie’s balance between horror and having a dark sense of humor. The Route 23 pile up is probably the most iconic vision in the franchise. I also appreciate how this movie expands on what was established in the first film. I love the addition of Death working backwards because the events of the first movie caused a ripple effect. This movie also establishes a way to take yourself off of death’s list. Mixed Aspects: The main thing I have mixed feelings about is the cast. I’m not as invested in this cast of...

Plot Synopsis: High School student Alex Browning has a vision that the plane his high school French class is on is going to explode in mid air. He manages to get a few of his classmates and one of the two teachers chaperoning off of the plane before his vision horrifyingly comes to fruition. That’s only the beginning of the nightmare, as about a month later, the survivors begin to die in what appears to be freak accidents. Positives: First of all, this is an awesome concept for a horror movie. I love how much it preys on the fear of flying. I also appreciate that, at its core, this is a slasher flick, where the entity of death itself is the slasher. I also really like this cast of characters (possibly the best in the franchise). I think it’s safe to say that Alex is the best protagonist in the series, and Devon Sawa is pretty damn good in the role. Seann William Scott makes for solid comic relief. But, let’s talk about the man who gives easily the movie’s best performance. The late Ton...