Flight 180 and the subsequent franchise that began after the original Final Destination movie are widely known. The series of horror movies centered around a mysterious entity that ensures you die when you are meant to have been around since 2000. Each installment continues the previous film inclusive of its common lore, rules, characters, and universe-building that often reaches next-level detail.
If it has been a while since you’ve watched any of the titles in the series, going back to the beginning seems like the best thing to do. Especially if you want to be able to fill in the gaps as the story moves forward. With 14 years between number 5 and the newest arrival, there is certainly plenty to catch up on if you want the best viewing experience.
What I would like to do is, rewatch the franchise and figure out which Final Destination movie is the best and why. So, follow along on Mother of Movies and find out what the verdict is.
But What Do We Know?
Each title in the Final Destination franchise begins almost the same way. The films thrive on the impending stress of “what might happen,” follow every instance of coincidental happenstance, and play in the depths of ensuring every moment that could be perceived as tense, is a moment that needs music to point it out. This is a movie series that holds qualifications in foreshadowing and plenty of films since, have begged, borrowed, and stolen from the iconic horror movies’ success.
Final Destination 2000 Rating
Overall, the first film has an excellent cast. Logically, the film hits enough beats of common sense to not be too frustrating about subsequent character choices. The group, while often not confident that something otherworldly is underfoot, makes rational choices most of the time, especially for teens. The FBI characters have a little depth, unlike their movie reputation suggests.
The cinematography is excellent and there is so much attention to detail, that fans have been scouring for clues for more than 24 years.
Mother of Movies rates Final Destination 2000
5 out of 5 stars
For a review of Final Destination 2, the sequel, check this link.
The Ultimate Listen to Your Gut Movie
Final Destination evolves around a “feeling.” In the first movie, Alex gets a premonition sparked by the strange knowing that something bad will happen. In this title, later, a girl called Clear who makes a comeback in the second film also feels it when the entity is around doing things.
Is It A Demon or Entity?
Everything about the original horror movie leans into the notion that “something” or “someone” is behind it. Clearer than most of the narrative that follows in sequels, Final Destination 2000 makes its intention very clear. The chosen character is given a premonition that begins early on and unrelated to the events that happen later.
For Alex, it all begins when he is packing for the airport and mentions that he likes to keep the previous tag on his suitcase for “luck” before his mom says it’s silly and rips it off. At the airport, a new suitcase tag is placed on his bag, and the stewardess mentions that his seat number is the same as his birthday, meaning it is fortuitous. His premonition causes him to feel like he has already lived the moments as he and his classmates board the plane. But, by the time he avoids death’s invitation to join, the rest of the story has already been set in motion.
How Does Death Kill?
If you escape Death’s hand, he will come back for you. Does anyone else think the mortician character is an entity in human form? I do. Played by the horror icon Tony Todd, Bludowrth is a mortician appearing in each movie in the franchise. Not only that, but he utters many sentiments that seem to come right from the source.
“I’ll see you soon.”
Final Destination Quote
As Alex and his new friend Clear try to put all the pieces together, the entity can be seen closing in on his first forgotten victim, Todd. A breeze enters an enclosed space, it uses water to find its opportunity to kill and there is a very visceral looming shadow that appears before the moment of death. But not all the sequels in the franchise do this. Just the first and second installments.
“In death, there are no accidents, no coincidences, no escapes.”
Quote from the 2000 release of Final Destination
The original 2000 release spends a lot of time pointing out the rules. However, by the end of the Final Destination movie, not all of them are correct. Even if the process throughout most of the run time is centered around who will die next, the entity isn’t as keen to follow this plan. Alex has a very clear list, but when an intervention is taking place, the supernatural being splits its power. There is also a scene where a dog recoils having seen the same dark shadow entering the room.
We see it when Billy gets killed while Alex is intervening with Death’s plan for Carter. It can also be seen at the end of Final Destination when Clear is trapped inside the car and Death makes a play for Alex, only intensifying its grip when one or the other looks likely to escape. It’s an interesting notion that only produces more examples of Death’s design as the films continue. But there is no doubt that the first Final Destination movie makes Death a character too.
For more on all the secrets and weird anomalies in the film series, check out this great video that includes a lot of them.
Final Destination 6: Bloodlines
A new release Final Destination, number 6, is headed for eager fans in 2025. The title will be directed by Zach Lipovsky (Dead Rising: Watchtower) and Adam B. Stein (Freaks). An early statement from the production team, suggests a scene will be featured set in a tattoo parlor. Fortunately, the writers for the new movie bode strong horror behind them.
Writers for FD 6
Guy Busick has written for Scream, Ready or Not, and Abigail. Lori Evans is the creator behind Wicked Wicked Games and Jeffrey Reddick is on board and wrote the screenplay for the Final Destination original.
Final Destination
Director: James Wong
Date Created: 2000-03-17 17:00
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