Final Destination Movie Review

Final Destination (2000)

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Written by: Glen Morgan & James Wong and Jeffrey Reddick (screenplay), Jeffrey Reddick (story)
Directed by: James Wong
Starring: Devon Sawa, Ali Larter, Kerr Smith, Kristen Cloke, Seann William Scott, Tony Todd
Rated: R
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Plot
Death hunts a group of teens who avoided their fate after one of them has a premonition.

Verdict
This has a great premise that devolves from intricately gruesome deaths to mindless violence. The uneasiness and dread this develops is abandoned as the movie wants to go bigger for each death which means the last quarter of this is mindless and mishaps. The introduction is great, but the movie tumbles downhill for the rest of the run time, and the introduction can't make up for that.
Skip it.

Review
Reddick wrote this as a spec script for The X-Files. Show writers Morgan and Wong rewrote the script with Wong making this movie his directorial debut.

This movie has such a great idea. Knowing this was a spec script, I can see how it would have worked as an X-File. A high school class is flying to France, comically none of them understand French. This creates such a great mood. Alex (Devon Sawa) is hearing and seeing things that strange, making him uneasiness about the flight. The introduction makes you just a bit uneasy as Alex becomes more panicked. This has a fantastic dream sequence, and eventually Alex is removed from the plane along with a few classmates. As the plane takes off and they miss their trip, the plane explodes.

Devon Sawa plays Alex Browning

Many deaths occur, but each one is less interesting than the last. Everyone is suspicious of Alex, but how would he have known about the plane? Later why is he on the premises each time someone dies? A medical examiner imparts heavy handed advice that serves as exposition to what just happened. He acts like some kind of horror villain as he explains death's plan and how Alex disrupted it.

The introduction to the movie unfortunately is the best part of the movie. It's unsettling as know something will happen, but we don't know what. It's almost a game as the we know characters are going to die and it's a question of what have we seen that may be the device.

Kristen Cloke, Seann William Scott, Kerr Smith, Amanda Detmer, Devon Sawa,
Chad Donella, Ali Larter play Valerie, Billy, Carter, Terry, Alex, Tod, Clear

Alex wants to save everyone, but you do you best the inevitable when inexplicable accidents seem unpreventable? It's a fun idea that coasts on the premise. The last third of the movie devolves to gruesome and interesting deaths. The time this takes in the beginning to create a great mood is abandoned for improbable action. At one point Alex is swatting at a wriggling power line with a shovel. What does he think that will accomplish?

 I like the idea of this and the introduction is great, but the movie can't maintain that level of engagement. By the end the action is nearly boring. The introduction is the only part worth seeing. Once the plane blows up, you could just skip the rest.