Final Destination 5 (2011)

the audience applauded

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

The movie really just wants to entertain people.

"Final Destination 5" adheres pretty closely to the formula established in the previous four films. Character A, in this case aspiring chef Sam (Nicholas D'Agosto, 'Gotham'), has a horrifying vision of a major catastrophe, and he and assorted others (who died during the vision) are frightened when they escape and witness the catastrophe actually taking place. They spend the rest of the film dying off in spectacular fashion, because as omnipresent coroner Bludworth (Tony "Candyman" Todd) likes to put it, "Death doesn't like to be cheated." They also have to wonder if it's at all possible to avoid what seems to be inevitable.This series still continues to be perversely entertaining in its over the top depictions of ultra-elaborate death set pieces, and the resulting cartoonish gore. It still plays that way at times, but at least writer Eric Heisserer (the "Thing" prequel) and director Steven Quale, the latter making his fictional feature debut, give us enough story and enough character detail to make our intended victims worth watching. They also make sure to give us little moments of foreshadowing that will pay off very soon. The filmmaking is slick, and the wholesale destruction of human bodies consistently offers amusement. One undeniable highlight is a case of laser eye surgery gone horribly wrong.Where this offers some truly interesting wrinkles is when: A) Peter Friedkin (Tom Cruise lookalike Miles Fisher, "J. Edgar") thinks he has a handle on solving his problem, and B) the denouement where events take a very circular turn. It rather reminded this viewer of the way the writers of the "Saw" sequels would go out of their way to tie events & characters together. But this was fairly clever, and appreciated.The cast is personable. D'Agosto and Emma Bell ('The Walking Dead') as his sweetie are likeable, P.J. Byrne ("The Wolf of Wall Street") is a hoot as an uber-sleazy moron, Arlen Escarpeta (the "Friday the 13th" reboot) is engaging, and there are also roles for veterans David Koechner ("Anchorman") and Courtney B. Vance ('Law & Order: Criminal Intent'), the latter playing an appropriately befuddled Federal agent.A reel of highlights from all the previous films precedes the end credits, and one has to feel that this fifth entry does provide a sense of closure...unless, of course, some producer or suit decides to resurrect the series at some point.Seven out of 10.

I think Final Destination 5 might be my favorite Final Destination film. If not, it's neck-and-neck with the original.Unlike the fourth film, this one has some really likable characters, similar to the first two films. The deaths involved in this one were extremely elaborate and interesting and the ending involved a gigantic bamboozle that I still get goosebumps over.Made 11 years after the first one, you can see how much the franchise has changed and grown and while the fourth one was bad, the fifth one made the franchise fresh again.I almost want a new Final Destination film. Almost.Definitely watch this one if you enjoyed the first, but watch the first one - first.

Summary: Final Destination 5 delivers mind-blowing special effects, suspense, and an unforgettable bridge collapse sequence. 84/100 (B+)Directed by Steven Quale, Final Destination 5 is undoubtedly the strongest installment of the franchise. Why? The script was improved and the movie is well-directed. The special effects were astonishing. The bridge collapse sequence was epic and unforgettable. This scene has the best CGI I have seen, everything looked so real. Also, the sound mixing and the editing were surprisingly well done. Final Destination 5 has the right director, writer and cast. The main character played by Nicholas D'Agosto did a good job, and his co-star Emma Bell clearly knows how to scream out loud, I loved her final scream in the bridge collapse scene. The rest of the cast was good enough, nothing special. Moving on, most of the characters were likable and I cared about them. There was only one character that was painfully annoying, Isaac performed by P.J. Byrne. He was unnecessary and silly.This is my favorite movie of the franchise. Final Destination 5 may be as messy and pointlessly gory as the other installments of the franchise, but the difference here is that the script is better, and no line is wasted. Also, the movie had no jump scares, I loved that. The director created a suspenseful and scary atmosphere throughout the film. The death scenes were amazing, intense and sometimes exaggerated. Steven Quale has potential. He did a pretty good job with this movie, and must do more movies like this in the future. Anyway, my conclusion is that this entry is as messy as the previous installments, but the writing was improved, the suspense and the direction were neat too. I have heard that the 3D effects here were eye-popping, I can not wait to see it on 3D. Surely FD5 has flaws, but I do not care, it was entertaining as hell to me. I highly recommend it for fans of the franchise. (B+)

Final destination was directed by Steven Quale in which Nicholas D'Agosto was casted as lead role Sam Laton.The Visual effects in this movie were splendid, especially in the sequence where the lead character in his precognitive dream manages to see his future in which he along with his friends were killed by collapse of the enormous bridge on which they were traveling.The movie was successful in transporting the audience as participants in the movie.Every single shot was clearly shot with utmost care so that the continuity is maintained.The movie was a taut, sharp and intelligent piece of horror. Indeed the films horror was based on a good use of suspense rather than out-and-out gore.The way in which the deaths were directed were really horrendous.The overall conclusion we can draw by watching the movie was death is not an accident but is planned so that when your time comes, you can absolutely do nothing about it. You can only cheat death temporarily. It'll get you in the end, by any means necessary no matter what plans you have made to avoid it. Morbid to be honest, but entirely true. Overall the moving rating is 3.5/5.