Final Destination: Bloodlines (2025)

I have praised the Final Destination movie series before. Even the worst film in the series manages to be average, as opposed to painfully unbearable, and the last film was a surprisingly great return to form for a series that has consistently tried to deliver bloody fun to horror fans for the past twenty five years. I had mixed feelings about this latest instalment. On the one hand, more Final Destination movies could be a good thing. On the other hand, something bad would start to work against the goodwill that so many have for the series. Unlike the portents glimpsed by our main character here, however, all of the signs seemed good. Directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein seemed to have a real love for the series, as evidenced by their inspired Zoom presentation that ultimately got them the job (read up on it, I hope we get to see it somewhere as a bonus feature one day), and writers Guy Busick and Lori Evans Taylor worked with Jon Watts on a story idea that would apparently please fans and relative newcomers alike. Then we got the marketing, which made great use of imagery associated with the films, particularly that Final Destination 2 opener.

Kaitlyn Santa Juana plays Stefani Reyes, a young woman we first see waking up from a nightmare at the end of a university class. That nightmare feels very real, and Stefani has been having it repeatedly for two months. It's not a premonition though, because it's all happening in the past, but it's odd that the young woman she sees in these visions shares the same name as her estranged grandmother, Iris (played by Brec Bassinger in the visions, and by Gabrielle Rose when shown in the here and now). Stefani starts to question her family about the problems that have kept certain family members away from one another, which leads her to discover a grand design by one Mr. G. Reaper to wipe out all of the lives that weren't supposed to exist if his earlier plan, to kill off a fancy restaurant full of patrons, had come to fruition. Stefani needs to figure out whatever pattern will decide the order of deaths in her family, and she hopes that there's some way to stop that big scythe cutting through their lifelines.

If there's one thing that the Final Destination movies does nowadays, one thing I hope we can all agree on, it puts the fun into funerals. This film leads characters from one tragic death to another, forcing everyone still living to eventually conclude that, yes, they are all being targeted by a vengeful and angry spirit of death. The opening disaster is top-tier stuff, although I would argue that Lipovsky and Stein make a rod for their own backs by starting things off with the kind of Rube Goldberg machinations that are normally saved for individual death scenes later in the runtime. There aren't too many surprises, which is more down to viewers now being familiar with the concept than any creative bankruptcy, but it's good to see that the screenplay at least tries a couple of small rug-pulls, some of which work better than others. Everyone is on the same page when it comes to the tone and delivering what audiences will want to see, and it allows the film to feel like the most self-aware and fun of the series. That doesn't necessarily make it the best, but it gives Lipovsky and Stein some strong cards that they play well. The timing couldn't have been better, considering the growth that you can see through their feature filmography throughout the past 10+ years. 

The cast all do a good job, despite the fact that they know they're just there to be involved in, or witness, memorable death scenes. Juana makes for a good lead, becoming more stressed without leaning too hard into full eye-twitching and head-shaking mode. She conveys the strength that her character needs, but is as vulnerable as everyone else when moving under the shadowy figure looking for ways to help shuffle her off the mortal coil. Teo Briones is a bit less enjoyable, playing her younger brother, Charlie, but that's fine when the film allows us to spend some time with other endangered family members played by Richard Harmon, Owen Patrick Joyner, and Anna Lore. Harmon is a highlight, thanks to the nature of his character and his delivery of some of the best lines in the film. Rya Kihlstedt and Alex Zahara are also dragged into the fatal danger zone, although both April Telek and Tinpo Lee only hang around long enough to witness some of the crazy carnage before they are unceremoniously shunted offscreen. There's also the expected cameo from Tony Todd, as poignant as it is enjoyable this time around due to the fact that it will stand as one of his final film roles. And what a touching send-off from the series it is.

I have criticisms, but they feel very minor when I consider how much I enjoyed this. The quality of the special effects varies wildly, especially in the CGI-heavy opening sequence, there are some inconsistencies with how things were laid out earlier in the series (easy enough to overlook though, and I am willing to consider that previous theories were put forward by people who didn't know they were mistaken), and the fact that we're supposed to believe that someone would shelter away from death in a house surrounded by multiple literal death-traps is an oversight that I wish they had managed to correct before getting the final draft of the screenplay written. I still had more fun with this at the cinema than almost any other horror movie I can think of in years. It's a crowd-pleaser, and I encourage absolutely everyone to get along and see it in the cinema if they can. It was made to be experienced with people communally enjoying the way it deftly dances between the humour and the bloodshed.

8/10

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Anderson Falls (2020)

There's a point in Anderson Falls that somehow marks the divide between the good and the bad. It comes along just after the opening scenes, a thrilling sequence that shows the M. O. of two killers played by Gary Cole and Richard Harmon. Shawn Ashmore is the cop who finds his wife dead, an apparent suicide that he knows is really murder. And it is the way the film shows his mindset after her death that, to me anyway, marks the start of a swift plummet in quality. Ashmore has a beard. Yes, this is a film in which a good cop is shown to be upset by the fact that he has given up on shaving. Because we all know that if you give up on shaving then you give up on life.

At the risk of spoiling anything for viewers tempted to see the film, that first paragraph sums up the film. That's it. Ashmore is the only cop convinced that a number of suicides are actually homicides. He knows this because his wife would never kill herself, she had everything to live for. While obsessing over the case, he upsets his ex-partner-now-Captain (Daniella Alonso), he upsets his mother (Lin Shaye) and he keeps delaying a planned trip to Disneyland with his son (Judah Mackey).

First of all, if you are director Julien Seri, or if you're a friend of his in any way, then please look away now. Seri was supposed to be presenting this film as the first film on the final day of Glasgow Frightfest 2020, but technical issues meant that it ended up being the last film of the festival. And Seri kindly stuck around for the whole day, introducing his movie in a small Q & A session. He seemed very nice, and earnest in what he seems to view as a decent little thriller with some nice twists and turns. Which is why he, or anyone who knows him, should look away now.

Anderson Falls is absolutely awful, in a way that made many viewers laugh out loud during moments that weren't really designed to be comedic. A lot of the problems lie with the script, by Giles Daoust. I'm not familiar with the filmography of Daoust, and this doesn't make me want to check out anything else he has done. Interestingly, he wrote and directed a movie called The Room back in 2006. Maybe he's always wanted to tap into the same rich vein of comedy gold that Tommy Wiseau lucked into with his movie, and maybe Anderson Falls is his best attempt at that. If so, well done. He almost manages it.

This is a film you must see if you want to watch Shawn Ashmore stringing together various photos and news items a la Charlie Day in that popular conspiracy theory image, or if you want to see him shouting "I hate you, I hate you" at those same photos, or even chuckle at him just moments later telling his captain that he has managed to think like the killers and has a list of women he would kill next. Because the killers kill women. Every time. And make it look like the same kind of suicide. Every time. And there's no actual reason for it. No, nothing. Seriously. Which doesn't stop the killers having their own board of connected items and photos in their house basement, despite none of the victims being connected in any way.

Perhaps you'd like to watch a black and white image of Shawn Ashmore making faces alongside other black and white images of Shawn Ashmore making faces in a fleeting scene that looks like the rough cut of a 1980s Godley & Creme music video. Well, good times, this is the film for you. Or maybe you like Gary Cole, who is a great actor, but want to see how he deals with some of the worst dialogue that he's ever been given. Again, have your fill.

I doubt that a better cast could have helped this, considering how much both Cole and Shaye even struggle to do their usual good work, but Ashmore is far from a strong lead. I LIKE Ashmore, I really do, but he is not the right fit for this role. At all. Alonso gets to utter every typical Police Captain line to the troubled cop she cares about, of course, and Mackey is a child, so he can either greatly improve in the next few years or eventually quit if he continues to be as bad as he is here. It's Harmon who comes out of this best, and it's no coincidence that he also has the least lines of dialogue.

Julien Seri got himself a fair few fans with his previous movie, Night Fare (which I have yet to see). I can't see this one making him popular with anyone, aside from bad movie connoisseurs. Avoid at all costs.

2/10

Grave Encounters 2 (2012)

Grave Encounters is a found footage movie written and directed by The Vicious Brothers (AKA Colin Minihan and Stuart Ortiz) that was released last year to a pretty warm reception from horror fans. Of course, some people hated it (many are sick, by now, of the whole "found footage" subgenre anyway) but a lot of people were very impressed. I really enjoyed it but it was almost the very definition of a ghost train/funhouse movie. The jump scares were enjoyable, things were occasionally intense, but it didn't really live up to the promise that it had. In my view, anyway.

That didn't stop me from looking forward to this sequel. I was even more optimistic when I found out that the people involved, and John Poliquin is credited as the director this time, were going to be taking an interesting approach. They were going down the Book Of Shadows route which sounded just fine to me as I am one of the 5% of the population who loved that sequel to The Blair Witch Project.

Richard Harmon (a young man who looks far too much like Robert Pattinson for his own good, sadly) plays Alex Wright, a young man who uploads movie reviews on to the internet and also keeps people up to date on his own blossoming directorial career. He's directing a horror movie with some fellow students involved and he wants it to be something truly memorable. Hopefully, he can make it as memorable as Grave Encounters, a movie that he advised people wasn't really worth a watch but that has played on his mind ever since he saw it. In fact, Alex has become a bit obsessed and thinks that the events depicted in Grave Encounters really happened. When his online videos start receiving replies from a user going by the name of "deathawaits" he decides that he should follow his gut and find out more about the movie. He talks to a number of people and soon becomes more and more convinced that his theory - that the movie shows real events - is correct. But the final proof required will only be found by going to the location and checking it out. The five members making up the group have packed plenty that they think will see them a lot better prepared than the first group.

Surprising as it may seem, I enjoyed this even more than the first movie. The script by The Vicious Brothers is very clever and allows them to have their cake and eat it. When Book Of Shadows was released years ago anyone who liked the film, such as myself, would defend it by reminding people that simply providing another bunch of people getting lost in the woods would be a boring and horrible retread of the first film. In Grave Encounters 2, aspects of the first movie are looked at and the premise gradually moves to what viewers think will simply be a retread of the first movie before it all gets wilder and wilder. That's the real beauty of it. Grave Encounters set things up for a horror movie that had some crazy moments here and there but the sequel basically kicks into gear after half an hour or so and then says "well, if you thought THAT stuff was out there then just strap yourself in and enjoy this lot".

The cast aren't really great but they do good enough. Harmon carries most of the scenes but Stephanie Bennett, Leanne Lapp, Dylan Playfair and Howie Lai make up the full group bravely venturing where things do more than just go bump in the night. Fans of the first movie will be pleased to know that Sean Rogerson returns (though I won't say in what capacity) and has a lot of fun in his role as he gets to act quite differently from how he was in the first movie.

The first movie was enjoyable but slightly disappointing. This sequel has a better script, the courage of its convictions to completely run with the ideas put forward and ends up being slightly better. That's rare in the land of sequels. It's almost impossible in the land of horror sequels.

7/10

http://www.amazon.com/Grave-Encounters-2/dp/B009KOE64I/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1349374636&sr=8-4&keywords=grave+encounters+2