Destination unknown (Final Destination (DVD))

Member Name: GroundZero

Product:	Final Destination (DVD)
Date:	24/02/01 (121 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Original idea, nicely executed, good range of extras, good commentary

Disadvantages: A bit short

After the success of Scream, the teen horror genre has been done to death over the past few years. With each new film parodying the one that went before it, it’s nice to see the genre starting to come full circle with films like Final Destination.

Instead of the usual whodunnit slasher type film, the killer in this movie is Death himself. When Alex (Devon Sawa) has a premonition that the plane he has just boarded will detonate on take-off, his panic attack sees him and a number of his classmates thrown off the flight. Their resentment at missing the chance of their school trip to France is soon replaced with a sense of horror when, as Alex foresaw, the plane blows up shortly after leaving the runway, killing all onboard.

This is where the story really starts to take off (excuse the pun). Had Alex not had his premonition, then the classmates who miraculously escaped the crash would also have perished. Before long, the survivors start to dwindle in numbers, as Death comes for those who were fortunate enough to escape their fate first time around. As each of the survivors is despatched in a typically gruesome manner (but then you wouldn’t expect anything less from this type of film!), Alex and Clear (the beautiful Ali Larter), another survivor, start to realise what is going on. Can they beat Death’s design before it is too late and they are next on the list?

Although not a particularly big fan of the whole genre (I really liked Scream, but since then things have just been getting sillier and sillier), I loved Final Destination. The film expertly builds up the tension when you know someone is about to get the chop (literally in one case), but the film is so cleverly put together that you are never entirely sure how and when each of the cast’s time is up.

The Region 2 DVD is one of the best I have seen recently. Picture quality is excellent, with a screen ratio of 2.35:1, anamorphically enhanced. Sou
nd is Dolby Digital 5.1. The film itself is rather short, at only 94 minutes, but this leaves plenty of room for extras, which thankfully are well up to scratch.

This disc has a decent range of relevant extras rather than the filler material that seems to be becoming more common these days. In addition to the theatrical trailer and Cast and Crew section, there are a number of deleted scenes. These provide an interesting insight into what the writer and director had originally planned. Without giving the game away, the scenes that were cut take the film in a completely different direction, with an interesting subplot that is only hinted at in the final cut. I personally liked the original ideas, but the crew simply felt that they were unsuitable for this type of film.

Perhaps the best extra is a 10 minute feature on the test screenings of the film, used to determine whether certain elements needed rewriting. The producer, Glen Morgan and director, James Wong, both of X-Files fame, discuss how the audiences reacted to the first showings. Apparently the first audiences weren’t too keen on the original ending, so the producers decided to shoot an alternative end sequence. This feature is highly amusing for some of the bizarre answers given by members of the audience on their opinions of the film.

The other featurette on the disc covers the work of an “intuitive investigator”, who helps the police services with unsolved crimes by “seeing” things about the case. This is interesting, even if you can’t help feeling that it’s starting to encroach on X-Files territory…

The feature length commentary is one of the better ones I have listened to, with a number of things being pointed out, such as the references to horror film stars from the past in the naming of the characters. This is presented in a very light-hearted style, and is very funny at times. The writer, director and produce
r clearly had great fun putting this together.

The final extras are a couple of games, one where you are supposed to be able to test your psychic powers by correctly guessing symbols (I’m not pyschic, apparently!), and a rather morbid death calculator, which tells you when you will die (but not how, unfortunately!). Whoever put this disc together must have a twisted sense of humour!

I really enjoyed this DVD, much more than I was expecting to. The movie itself is excellent, and certainly puts a new slant on the tired old teen horror film. The concept of the film is an intriguing one, and it is never less than entertaining. Definitely worth a look. You may not be so keen to fly in the future though...

Summary: