2-Disc Special Edition
Alrighty, here’s one of those instance in which I openly admit I’m wrong. It’s rare so savor it because I don’t come clean often. It’s not that I’m not wrong often, I’m wrong all the time, I just don’t see the sense in admitting it…vanity can be a bitch. The only reason I’m opening up to you folks is because you’re Joe Horror readers and that makes you smarter than the average bears.
Not long ago I made the comment that I’d wait to see Final Destination 3 once the trilogy box set hit stores. Now, it’s not like I’m opposed to Hollywood horror because I’m far too old to be bitching about yuppies, Starbucks and corporate greed. Hollywood horror, for the most part, just doesn’t challenge me so I never feel the need to put money into big studio hands for something I don’t really need.
Well…I was wrong. There, I said it.
Not only did I watch Final Destination 3, but I enjoyed the HELL out of it and I definitely plan on purchasing it. I’m certainly not saying Final Destination 3 was brilliantly written, because it wasn’t, nor am I saying it challenged me intellectually because it didn’t. Bottomline…Final Destination 3 entertained me and that’s what it’s all about dammit. If it doesn’t stimulate my mind or provoke discussion it should, at the very least, provide the hotties, bodies and blood.
Part of Final Destination 3’s entertainment value can be attributed to a bad ass concept in which you choose the fate of the film’s characters! Having grown up on “Choose Your Own Adventure” books, I can honestly say this was a truly innovative idea and without a doubt the start of something amazing. Hopefully, we’ll start seeing slasher films that allow us to “play the slasher” and select which victims to hack up first! Even better…a zombie film that allows us to make our own survival choices as a character in the film!
As I mentioned earlier…Final Destination 3 is by no means original. The scenario is pretty much the same except the film starts off in an amusement park. Wendy, a serious control freak, flips out after “seeing” the rollercoaster they’re all planning on riding derail and kill everybody aboard. Naturally, she’s removed from the coaster and her best friend’s boyfriend Kevin and a small group of people leave with her. Unfortunately, Wendy’s boyfriend and best friend remain aboard and, of course, are hideously mangled when the coaster derails.
The small group of survivors begin passing away one by one as Death reclaims souls in the order they were sitting on the coaster before jumping off. Wendy and Kevin quickly come to the conclusion that saving a person may also mean putting themselves at risk soon but they choose to inform survivors anyhow.
Can Wendy and Kevin beat death or is their fate written in stone? Can they control their own destiny or have unstoppable events already been set in motion?
Final Destination 3 offers nothing new to the series aside from some freakin’ heart stopping death sequences! Isn’t that really what the series is about anyhow? Nobody is going to be renting this for the outstanding acting, though it is good. I was a bit disappointed that the scenario hasn’t changed but this franchise is sticking with what works and I suppose that’s fine.
FX purists will probably soil their diapers when they get a load of some of the digital death scenes in this but in this instance I’d recommend just going with the flow. The gore sequences worked well enough to satisfy my inner goremonger.
Fans of jiggling flesh won’t be disappointed either as we get two slutty chickens showing their juggs in a tanning bed sequence that has to be seen to believed. It was like a semi-nude Stooges episode!
One thing I loved about this flick was the complex build up’s to the actual deaths themselves. Every little detail makes you wonder if they’re going to get it this way or that way or the other way! Just when you think you know what’s going to happen…PSYCHE…PSYCHE…TRIPLE PSYCHE! This film is going to keep you own your toes! If that weren’t enough…THEY LET YOU MAKE SOME OF THOSE LIFE OR DEATH DECISIONS!
There’s this one interesting decision also allows you to read up on the fate of the two survivors of Final Destination 2 which I thought was kinda cool as well.
This 2-disc set is literally packed out with so many extras that’ll you’ll easily spend hours in front of your TV! Don’t miss out! Incredibly entertaining!
By the way, you can currently purchase the Final Destination Thrill-ology 4-disc box set containing all three films, and a fourth extras disc, though I’m not really certain if they’re all in widescreen format. It may be worth looking into though.
