Parents' Guide to

The Final Destination

By James Rocchi, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 18+

Horror franchise's leap to 3D is gorier than ever.

Movie R 2009 82 minutes
The Final Destination Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 15+

Based on 27 parent reviews

Raritysfans
Raritysfans Adult
December 20, 2020
age 18+

Blow Up

Typical FD movie full of gore, accidents and out of context. Good for a mans nights out on a Weekend. In consumerism Paris, malls and more.

This title has:

Too much violence
Too much sex
Too much swearing
Too much consumerism
XxSkyexX
XxSkyexX Adult
April 13, 2020
age 15+

Gruesome

This movie was good,but the only bad parts were when the people got killed another part was when they were in the pool tent .This scene was very sex themed. I say this because this male wanted to have some sex so he found women and started have sex and not caring if anyone saw because they were riding dick and her boobs were out. Im not saying I liked it but this movie isn't for kids

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
See all 27 parent reviews

What's the Story?

As in previous Final Destination films, THE FINAL DESTINATION begins with a vision, as Nick (Bobby Campo) joins his friends at an auto race and has a premonition of a horrible disaster that kills his friends and others. Snapping back to the present, Nick freaks out and gets his friends and some of the surrounding people to leave, meaning that they're saved when a crash does end up sending flaming debris flying into the stands. Spared, the group reflects on their good fortune -- and then start dying, one by one. Death, it seems, has a to-do list. ...

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (27 ):
Kids say (56 ):

Even with 3D making for a unique viewing experience, the fact is that The Final Destination is a fairly dull affair. And the gloss of spilled blood can't make up for the dreary tedium of the film's central pitch: If death is coming, and unavoidable, then watching these films mostly involves waiting for people to die, with no hope of their salvation. The actors are all adequate -- although one-time Oscar nominee Mykelti Williamson is far better than this material.

Director David R. Ellis knows what the fans of this series expect, and he doesn't fail to deliver the bloody accidents and deadly blows of the franchise. But he doesn't deliver anything else -- character development that would make us care about the people being killed, for instance, or twists in the narrative other than wondering when the next victim will die and how ... which is intermittently amusing, but not a foundation for a film, especially one we've seen three times before. At the very least, the 3D gimmick makes The Final Destination pop a little more than a conventional part four, but even the guts and gore leaping off the screen can't make up for the way The Final Destination's story just lies there.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the recent rise in 3D films. Is this a new way to return to the excitement of going to the theater in the age of fancy home theaters, or just a gimmick that's being exploited?

  • How does the 3D affect the impact of the movie's gory, grisly murder scenes and other violence?

  • What's your opinion of the nature of fate, chance, and bad luck? What, if anything, can be done to avoid the random chance of death that fills life's every corner?

Movie Details

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