I was so sure that Final Destination 2 was the last film in the series, until the final scene of that movie, when a day player was blown to bits by the barbecue and one of his bodyparts landed in someone's hamburger. I still have no idea why that particular kid bit it, but it did push the premise that the Grim Reaper would return to wreak havoc on another group of unsuspecting teens at multiplexes across the country.

And yes, The Grim Reaper has come back again to smite anyone who tries to undo his design. Final Destination 3 also follows the same plot design that brought its predecessors success at the box office. However, as is common in horror film series, each film has upped the ante in terms of the blood, guts and gore that is depicted onscreen at the expense of plot execution. Flying heads and other body parts, galore and plenty of blood spilling to make up for the lack of suspense associated with most of them.

When it comes to carnage, the latest round of kids messing with fate has the others beat, with each death portrayed in more graphic detail than the previous one. That is an unfortunate unwritten rule of horror film sequels because too often, the sitting-on-the-edge-of-your-seat type of suspense is often traded for more graphic special effects. This film is no different and is why I hope this sequel is the last of the series.


The film begins just like the others in the series with a group of attractive teenagers enjoying themselves without a care in the world, this time at an amusement park. All of the typical prototypes of teen characters are represented in this film.

The gorgeous if shallow women, joined at the hip because no one else can stand to do anything but look at them.

The seedy pervert with the camera, who hangs around the teen set long after graduation.

The good-looking jockish guys who try to one-up each other in immature competitions, which makes an amusement park a perfect setting for them.

And the heroine, this time Wendy Christensen(portrayed by former Passions soap actress, Mary Elizabeth Winstead)a high school shutterbug who snaps away, not knowing that her photographs have become a medium for the Grim Reaper to provide previews of upcoming events.

It's senior night at the amusement park, which looks like it had been condemned, then reopened for this special occasion. Especially the monstrous roller coaster which looms into the night behind an animated devil which spouts sinister promises of death, which adds to the excitement of everyone but Wendy, who instead feels apprehension which bulds and soon culminates in a horrific hallucination of a roller coaster disaster which causes the grisly deaths of her and her friends. As in the prior films, an argument breaks out, then a fight leading to the ejection of some of the teens off of the ride. To no one's surprise, including any amusement park safety inspectors, the roller coaster does indeed crash to the ground.

But the Grim Reaper never issues deliverance to its victims, only promissory notes and soon enough, it comes back to collect them from the "lucky" survivors of the amusement park disaster, using various imaginative techniques to accomplish its tasks. No one is spared, unless someone intervenes to save them from a grisly demise, which does not happen too often. And any deliverance from death's design, is alas, only temporary.

Before the Final Destinationtrilogy, Glen Morgan and James Wong were most known for their work on the television show, The X-Files and there is evidence of that show in their movies. The atmosphere that combines both the giddiness of a high school grad night with the feeling of death foreshadowed at an amusement park which looks and feels as menacing as it does fun. The buildup in suspense in this film is much better than that in the second film, and near to what was accomplished in the first film. Unfortunately, that makes the rest of the film seem weaker in comparison than happened in the previous films.

The acting is nothing special. Just a group of older actors portraying another round of doomed teenagers. Winstead is no Ali Larter, the heroine of the first two films, but tries hard. Tony Todd of Candyman, who played a ghoulish mortician in tune with both life and death in the first two films is absent in this one, which is a pity.

The ending of this film seemed more final than the earlier two films and in the spirit of this film offered plenty of blood and carnage as well. But if this film performs well at the box office, do not expect it to be the final chapter of the trilogy.

After all, before this film began, the theater previewed Scary Movie 4. Who would have thought?

Recommended:
No

Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age