What’s It About
In the 1960s, a grandmother predicts the collapse of a building and saves a group of people from death. Decades later, her granddaughter also begins to have visions of the death of her family members and later begins to realise that there is a sequence.
MOVIESinMO REVIEW
After a 14-year wait, the Final Destination series returns with “Bloodlines,” returning to the insane death traps that we all love. Fans will enjoy some of the inventive kills we can expect, but this sixth installment doesn’t quite grasp what made the other films so special. “Bloodlines” starts differently from the other films. We don’t jump into action right away. We set up in the 1950s with Iris (Brec Bassinger) having a terrifying vision at the opening of the “Skyview” restaurant. Within her vision, one penny sets off a chain reaction that makes the glass floor break, and everyone ends up plummeting to their deaths. However, there is a twist – this is not like your average Final Destination opening. The dream actually belongs to Iris’s granddaughter Stefani (Kaitlyn Santa Juana), who has been experiencing the same nightmare repeatedly. Searching for answers, Stefani discovers her grandmother, who resides alone in a sturdy cabin as if preparing for the apocalypse. Iris uncovers a startling revelation: Death is pursuing their entire family because she misled it years ago at the Skyview. Now Stefani must convince her estranged cousins they’re all going to die before time’s up. While the family spin on the formula is appreciated, “Bloodlines” drops the ball in the execution. Stefani does not experience the premonitions that made previous protagonists so integral to their lives. She merely worries a lot and, therefore, appears more of a witness than a savior. The movie deals with fear and nervousness but feels too heavy-handed instead of being frightening. “Bloodlines” runs for 110 minutes and is 20-30 minutes longer than the other films in the franchise. The parts that are not deaths are dull, and most of the acting does not improve. The family drama inserted to help the storyline be more robust only makes everything drag. Let’s be honest – we watch these movies for the intense death sequences. There is one truly brilliant sequence in a tattoo shop that gives us all we can ask for in a Final Destination death: suspense, shocks, and a wonderful payoff. Directors Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein do their finest work here, creating tension and startling us. Sadly, the other death sequences aren’t as potent. They use too much obvious CGI, with the fake orange blood that ruins the impact. A few of the deaths are too prolonged to take place, and others happen so fast that they’re not given any impact. The kills are amusing but come across as more silly than scary. But nothing is perfect. Richard Harmon is the scene-stealer in every scene as Erik, bringing energy the movie is sorely lacking. Anna Lore is also noteworthy as Erik’s sister, Julia, performs what is perhaps the best scream in the whole movie. Brec Bassinger is excellent as young Iris in the flashbacks, but her older version has less to do. Tony Todd is back as enigmatic Bludworth for what seems to be a true farewell. His short scene, which he improvised for the most part, gives the film its most tear-jerking moment. It’s a tearful goodbye for a character that has been with the series from the start. The movie is clever in how it ties into the earlier films. Instead of taking the same idea but with different individuals, “Bloodlines” attempts to build on the story in clever ways. The idea of Death coming after an entire family because one member bucked fate years earlier adds something new to the franchise. “Final Destination Bloodlines” is a mix of great and not-so-great. There’s ample grisly carnage to please fans hungry for summer horror entertainment, but it doesn’t quite live up to the greatness of the best of the films in the franchise. The film wastes a lot of time on undeveloped characters and not nearly enough time developing actual suspense. For newcomers to the franchise, “Bloodlines” is a great jumping-on point with lots of hints about past films. For longtime fans, there’s enough new stuff and old nostalgia to make it worth watching, though it doesn’t quite recapture the magic that made Final Destination stand out in the beginning. What “Bloodlines” does prove is that this franchise can be interesting again. Had they done some more competent editing and better effects and had an idea of what makes these movies special, the next movie could potentially be pretty good. Until then, this one is average. It’s not the worst Final Destination movie, and it’s nowhere near the best.
OUR RATING – A COMEBACK 6