By George & Josh Bate
Fourteen years have passed since the previous Final Destination film was released. Before that, there were five movies in just over 10 years. The unique horror franchise, which spawned from an unproduced spec script for The X-Files, always had a certain appeal to it, featuring a clever premise, innovative kills, and a morbid sense of humor. It’s only natural then that Final Destination would be revisited at some point given the seemingly endless possibilities that can result from its core story. Enter Final Destination Bloodlines, a lean and thrilling reboot / reimagining of the franchise that delivers everything you would want from a Final Destination movie.
Final Destination Bloodlines stars Kaitlyn Santa Juana as Stefani Reyes, a college student plagued with nightmares of her grandmother dying in a horrific tower collapse in 1968. Curious to uncover the meaning behind these nightmares, Stefani soon discovers that her grandmother had a premonition that led to her saving the lives of everyone on the tower. Since then, Death itself has been after the survivors of the tower disaster and their entire families, which now includes Stefani and her family, as it believes they have cheated death.
The term ‘reboot’ gets thrown around a lot in discussing the continuation of long-standing franchises, but the sixth installment of the Final Destination franchise truly is a reboot. The film requires no prior knowledge, not even a surface level understanding, of any Final Destination movies. And yet Bloodlines is far from a remake as it clearly exists within the world established in the previous films and even builds upon the franchise’s lore. As a result, directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein craft a rare franchise installment that is simultaneously approachable to newcomers and respectful of long-standing fans.
From its very first moments, Final Destination Bloodlines proves its worthy standing as a Final Destination film. A prolonged, intense beginning not only sets the stage for the narrative that follows but also brilliantly taps into what makes this franchise so special. This beginning introduces the audience to Iris Campbell and her boyfriend Paul, who attend the grand opening of the Skyview Restaurant Tower. The film takes its time establishing all sorts of seemingly menial things that can eventually result in people dying on this massive tower. The calculated introduction to all these potential sources of death builds tension while evoking a brand of morbid laughter only a Final Destination film could elicit. Eventually, all the potential causes of death come to a reality in stunning and unexpected fashion. This scene structure will come as no surprise to anyone who has seen a Final Destination film and yet, despite how many times scenes adopt this same structure, they still manage to captivate. As all the precursors for death are meticulously and quite humorously laid out for the audience to view, much to the ignorance of the characters in the film, a delightful suspense is cultivated.
And this delightful suspense continues to be cultivated as Final Destination Bloodlines progresses forward from its introductory sequence. Although admittedly repetitive from a narrative perspective, the film soars beyond any pitfalls of staleness with one elaborately and creatively constructed scene after another. The joy that comes from a red herring, revealing that something you think will cause a character’s death isn’t actually the thing that kills them, remains consistent throughout, as does the sheer ingenuity of the kills. Much like how Final Destination 2 forever changed people’s willingness to drive behind log trucks, Final Destination Bloodlines will have viewers be extra careful around all sorts of seemingly harmless things in life.
The excellent, complicated cause-and-effect death sequences work in isolation but are amplified by a gripping and succinctly told story. Bloodlines establishes the rules of the Final Destination franchise with extraordinary briskness and simplicity, making it easier to immerse oneself in the individual scenes, rather than get lost in possibly muddled plotting. The film lives up to its subtitled ‘Bloodlines’ in showcasing how Death comes after anyone who has cheated death AND the families that these individuals went on to have. The clever story from Jon Watts, Guy Busick, and Lori Evans Taylor immediately conveys the stakes to the characters and audience, while affirming a set of rules that Death has to follow.
Amongst other things, Final Destination films are distinct from other horror films due to the invisibility of their antagonist. Although looming large over every single scene, Death is never to be seen explicitly, creating this all-encompassing threat that you can’t establish from. All these years later and the ingenuity of this premise still works so well.
Not working as well though are the core group of characters. One could argue that you don’t go to a Final Destination movie for complex character work, although there is some surprisingly solid character development in several previous installments. Unfortunately, that can’t be said of Bloodlines, which features a dull lead character in Stefani Reyes. Kaitlyn Santa Juana does a serviceable job as the character that introduces everyone else to the threat at hand, even though there isn’t anything of unique interest about the character. The array of other characters in the film primarily serve as people for Death to kill, rather than characters worth investing in. The sole exceptions to that are brothers Erik and Bobby Campbell, played by Richard Harmon and Owen Patrick Joyner. Harmon and Joyner inject much needed personality to an ensemble of uninteresting characters and steal every scene that they’re a part of.
Perhaps the most noteworthy inclusion in the Bloodlines cast is franchise veteran Tony Todd. Bloodlines marks one of Todd’s final film roles after his unfortunate passing last year and serves as a touching tribute to a film legend. Although Todd only features in one scene, his impact strongly resonates as Todd delivers important exposition and, more strikingly, touching words about the beauty of living. Todd’s words feel as if they come from a man who knew his time was coming to an end, making them pull at the heartstrings even more.
Moving into its final act, Final Destination Bloodlines loses some of the momentum that made the preceding hour and twenty minutes so enthralling. The creativity of kills that strongly stands out beforehand withers in a final act that, while still entertaining, doesn’t quite possess the same blend of terror and humor. As the film nears its end, it crashes to an abrupt conclusion, perhaps fitting and in line with some other franchise installments yet feeling off-putting nonetheless.
VERDICT: 7/10
After fourteen years without an installment, the Final Destination franchise returns with a lean thriller filled with everything you would want from a Final Destination film. Completely approachable to newcomers while respectful of franchise fans, Final Destination Bloodlines is the rare film that actually and accurately fits the term ‘reboot.’ The film from directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein begins with an excellent, prolonged introduction that sets the stage for the narrative going forward and the tone of a simultaneously suspenseful and humorous thrillride. Bloodlines features scene after scene of elaborately constructed kills that have you on the edge of your seat while evoking a morbid brand of laughter only a Final Destination film could elicit. In addition to forever transforming seemingly harmless objects and situations into horrifying opportunities for death, a tight script from Guy Busick and Lori Evans Taylor quickly and simply establishes the rules of the Final Destination universe, allowing one to be more immersed in the innovative kill sequences and less caught up in plotting. Unfortunately, a dull collection of characters leaves little to invest in beyond the kill sequences, although Richard Harmon and Owen Patrick Joyner inject much needed personality into the film. The standout performer ends up being the late Tony Todd, who, in one of his final film roles, delivers some touching words about the beauty of life. A final act that loses momentum and an ending that arrives all too abruptly mean Bloodlines concludes on shaky footing but not enough to derail an otherwise captivating watch. The welcomed return of the Final Destination franchise does not disappoint and will make for a thrilling time at the movies.