Final Destination 2, The Sequel

The franchise continues with Final Destination 2. Released in 2003, the Death-centric horror movie bares the scars of some iconic and memorable terrifying scenes. Most people will have at one time spoken about the horror movie narrative that left many people afraid of even driving on a highway behind large trucks carrying cargo. The sheer brilliance in honing in on suppressed fears is what made this title so famous.

Director David R. Ellis led events in the second movie as well as the 4th movie. Here he is joined by writers J. Mackye Gruber, Eric Bress, and Jeffrey Reddick. Those who are interested will notice the writer is the same for the first two installments.

In the second story, Final Destination 2 continues to question the so-called everyday coincidences to look beneath the surface of the visible world. A podcaster (almost like Death has its own Public Relations team) is heard in the background to re-cap previous lore and mythology for the titles and the message remains the same;

“Today may be your day to die.”

Quote from Final Destination 2

The scene is set with the usual small Easter eggs, like the radio playing “Highway to Hell.” The carnage begins really simply, with the log-filled truck letting its trailer load loose and instantly demolishing the cop car. What follows in the main character Kimberley’s premonition is the deaths of all her friends and the rest of the random people who were stuck behind her car as it stalled on the entrance ramp. Like the first movie, the chaos begins when Kimberly chooses to announce what is about to happen while it begins to actually happen.

Kimberley instantly hones in on Death’s advancement. What is immediately obvious between Final Destination 2000 and this sequel movie is that Death is not shown to be around as clearly as it was in the original film. There is no shadow seen looming, but the idea that Death has control of the elements it requires is still very much clear.

Final Destination 2 is more reliant on the clues from additional premonitions and the horror movie brings its A-game by suggesting that pigeons will be involved in the second death and then levels up by re-introducing potential victim Tim at the dentist. Viewers know something tense is about to happen when the signature tendrils of Death reach out for some water to control. This type of setup instantly introduces some continuance issues with Kimberley often being the actual cause of death by causing extra accidental messes.

What is also introduced is some more mythology for the franchise. Tony Todd appears in the first two films as an expert in Death’s design, but I still think he stands as a human rendition of who the villain is for the entire franchise. Not all of his advice comes from being a mortician and feels like he always knows more than he should. As well as telling the teens about what Death wants, he sometimes also gives advice that is unhelpful, just as Death would if he had a voice. Final Destination 2 is less logical and more purposeful killing.

To further fuel this idea, Kimberly meets up with Clear (from the first movie) and they become aware that Death’s design looks to be propelling backward to clean up any loose ends. Following this, the death scenes, though spectacular, are not as easy to explain away with coincidence. This also opens up the story to some annoying hiccups such as Clear being so easily convinced to leave the safest place she could be. Other frustrating elements arise in situations where Kimberley erratically heightens the remaining players by getting them to cause the accident themselves. I’m looking at you, elevator decapitation scene.

“Some people say there’s a balance to everything. For every life there’s a death, for every death, there is a life. But the introduction of life that was not meant to be, that can invalidate the list, force Death to start anew.”

Quote from Final Destination 2

Despite death scenes that remain etched in most horror fans’ minds for more than 20 years, FD 2 is not more entertaining than the first film. As we move through the franchise FD 1 is the best. For a review of the first film, read this. For another movie franchise, watch Winnie the Pooh, Blood and Honey.

FD 2 is rated

4 Flight 180 continues on in Final Destinal 2 out of 5

Final Destination 2 is streaming on: