Final Destination 5 is the prequel to Final Destination, it was released on August 12th, 2011 though originally was stated for theatrical release on August 26th, 2011. The film was directed by Steven Quale, and written by Eric Heisserer. It also stars Nicholas D'Agosto and Emma Bell.

Plot

The film opens up with a bunch of workers who are gathering together for a company retreat. Sam Lawton has prepared the breakfast before the bus ride. Sam is a fellow office worker and short order cook. His best friend Peter Friedkin is awaiting everyone else's arrival for the trip. Molly Harper, Sam's girlfriend, arrives and she then breaks up with him due to his dreams of going to Paris to be an apprentice for his mentor. Sam is hurt by Molly's decision. Meanwhile Peter's girlfriend Candice Hooper, an intern for the company and a gymnast, comes along with her rival Olivia Castle, a clad dressed office girl. Molly is being hit on by Isaac Palmer, a co-worker and womanizer. Dennis Lapman, the company's boss, orders everyone to move it onto the bus. Sam then goes to the construction wing of the building to find his other friend Nathan Sears, a supervisor who has a hard time dealing with construction worker Roy Carson. Nathan and Sam regroup and head on the bus to their destination. Sam then has a premonition of The North Bay Bridge collapsing, killing everyone except Molly, who did not die in the premonition. When Sam comes to, he see's he is still alive and he gets Molly off the bus. Peter, Candice, Olivia, Nathan, Isaac, and Dennis follow. The bridge begins to collapse and Sam rushes all of his friends to safety. The group looks surprised and confused as to how Sam knew the accident was going to happen.
The North Bay Bridge Survivors at the memorial.
During the company funeral, William Bludworth, a local coroner, is present and he warns the group that Death is after them. They all ignore his warnings and move on with their lives. Sam and Molly reconcile later that night. The next day, Candice is with Peter at her gymnastics practice, and he cheers her on. Candice does some work on the balance beam, and a screw from a malfunctioning fan falls o
Candice nearly avoiding the screw.

n the beam. Candice has many close calls with the screw, but it never injures her. Candice then goes to do some vault work. She is flipping while a fan set up by one of the coaches is turned on. Another girl on the beam does a routine and she accidentally steps on the screw and falls. She knocks over a bowl which is full of powder. The powder is then blown into the area and Candice loses her sight, and she flips, accidentally letting go, landing on her neck, causing her spine and knee to pop through her skin. Sam consoles a depressed Peter. The next day, the group is all together at their work place and they all start drinking to relax. Isaac is going through dead co-workers' desks and he comes across a Chinese massage parlor. Isaac arrives, flirting with many of the women, but is taken care of by an old Chinese woman who speaks English, but simply refuses to speak to Isaac. She later does acupuncture on him, and leaves him in a room where the walls are sound proof. As Isaac rolls over on his bed, the leg of it caves in sending him to the ground, pushing the needles into his body. He staggeringly gets up, but a bottle of alcohol causes a fire from a candle falling after Isaac's phone rings. Isaac avoids the contained fire, but as he waits against the wall, a shelved Buddha falls and crushes his head. Bludworth, who has been present for all of the deaths so far, is there and tells the remaining survivors that there is another way to avoid Death. They would have to kill someone to gain their Sam and Bludworth talking about death.
remaining days on Earth. Peter revels in the idea to where it makes him crazy. Agent Jim Block is covering the case of Sam and his friends, but he finds all of the deaths hard to believe. Olivia goes to get eye surgery the same day, and the doctor straps her head into place. Olivia, fearful, holds a teddy bear, and as the doctor put in tools to keep her eyes open, she rips off an eye from the bear. Olivia is told by the doctor to wait, but the machine begins to malfunction, overheating, and the button to begin surgery is dropped as she reaches for it in panic. The remote drops and the laser slices her eye open. The laser goes off a few more times and it burns through her hand and scars her face. She then escapes the machine. Sam, Molly and the doctor run in to see a scared Olivia but as they were about to save her, she trips on the teddy bear's eye causing her to fall off the building and smashed onto a windshield on a nearby car, then her eye rolls away to be run over by a passing car. Meanwhile, Nathan is working in construction and he is talking to Roy, an angry employee of his. Nathan immediately sees a beam move closer to him with a lifting hook under it. Nathan urges Roy to move, but he accidentally pushes him backwards as the hook falls, and Roy is stopped from landing on the spikes below. Nathan then sees Roy has been impaled by the hook through the head. As the group comes together, Peter finds that Nathan accidentally killed Roy, taking his days, skipping him in Death's design. Meanwhile, as Dennis grills them all, a stray wrench that Roy placed on a belt sander earlier is propelled into his eyes and through his skull, the long way. Later that night, in Le Miro 81, the cafe Sam cooks for, his mentor lets him become an apprentice in Paris. He also lets Sam have the restaurant for the night to spend it with Molly. Peter crashes the dinner, and he tells a story of how he tried to push a woman in front of a truck to steal her life. Peter admits he couldn't do such an act, and he then ponders Candice's death and how she didn't deserve to die, but yet Molly supposedly survived Sam's vision. Peter then tries to kill Molly.
Molly takes refu
Sam and Molly looking at Peter's corpse.
ge in the kitchen and Sam fights off Peter before Agent Block is shot by Peter, taking his years. The struggle leads to a gun being placed on the burning stove, but as Peter is about to kill Molly, Sam stabs him in the back with a large skewer. Then Sam realizes he stole Agent Block's life from Peter, but Agent Block wasn't supposed to survive that long anyway. A month later, Sam and Molly are boarding a plane to Paris, and she asks for the window seat. As they are boarding, a group of high schoolers fight, as a kid is kicked off with several students and a teacher. During take off, Sam overhears that the kid claimed to have a vision the plane was going to explode. Sam freaks out as he looks at his plane ticket, which reads "Flight 180". The plane begins to explode as the kid, r
The collapsed bar where Nathan is killed.

evealed as Alex Browning, predicted. Molly is sucked out the side, and is cut in half by the wing as the rest of plane catches fire, burning Sam to death. As the plane goes down in flames, a flame engulfed engine falls. Nathan is at a local bar, and he is talking to a guy who reveals that Roy was supposed to die in the next few days after his actual death involving the hook because he was ill. Nathan worries as the guy walks away to say "Life is a bitch." Then the landing gear from Flight 180 crashes through the bar and crushes Nathan to death, ultimately revealing the film to be a prequel to the events of the original Final Destination. The film took place in Mt. Abraham, New York.

Cast

Sam	Nicholas D' Agosto
Molly	Emma Bell
Peter Friedkin	Miles Fisher
Candice Hooper	Ellen Wroe
Olivia Castle	Jacqueline MacInnes Wood
Isaac	P.J. Byrne
Nathan	Arlen Escarpeta
Dennis	David Koechner
Agent Block	Courtney B. Vance
Bludworth	Tony Todd
Roy	Brent Stait
John	Roman Podhora
Cho	Jasmin Dring
Dr. Leonetti	Barclay Hope
Spa Receptionist	Chasty Ballesteros
Chef	Mike Dopud
Coach	Tanya Hubbard
Federal Agent	Frank Topol
Rocker	Tim Fellingham
Crime Scene Tech	Blaine Anderson
Reporter	Dawn Chubai
Mike the Waiter	Ryan Hesp
Bus Driver	Ian Thompson
Campus Security	Andy Nez
Woman	Jodi Balfour
FD1 Passenger	June B. Wilde
Porter	Brittany Rogers
Flight Attendant	Diana Pavlovská
Line Cook	Michael Adamthwaite
Spa Technician	Grace Baek

Casting

After the success of The Final Destination , which was thought to be last in the series, the head of Warner Bros. Alan Horn, had confirmed a fifth Final Destination film is in works at ShoWest. Producer Craig Perry later added that the film will be shot in 3D. The screenplay was written by Eric Heisserer, whom New Line hopes will break the repetition of the series. The studio has picked August 26, 2011 as the release date. Steven Quale, who worked alongside James Cameron, is the director, shooting begun on September 13 in Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada, like the first three films.

In an interview with Dread Central, Tony Todd stated that if this film is successful, Final Destination 6 and Final Destination 7 (which would be shot back to back) would be considered.

In August 2010, actor and musician Miles Fisher was the first to be cast in the upcoming horror. Fisher's rep confirmed "Miles has gotten a real movie job. Fisher is the first actor cast in Final Destination 5, the Steven Quale-directed horror film that is casting up at New Line Cinema. These are the pics where a group of characters narrowly escape death in a gruesome catastrophe, and then most of them get bumped off one by one in grisly fashion." Three days after Fisher's participation in the film, Arlen Escarpeta, who starred in the Friday the 13th remake, was announced that he was the next to join the franchise. Escarpeta later revealed, "I think what they're going to do really, really well this time around, they're going to go back - the story, the plot, a lot of stuff is really going to matter," explained Escarpeta. "I think the last movie it was just death. It was death, death, death, which is fine because that's what people want to see. But this time we're going to give them a little bit of everything - good story, great director - it's going to be good." In late August 2010 Nicholas D'Agosto, Ellen Wroe and Meghan Ory were reported to have joined the film, with D'Agosto.

One day after the announcement of D'Agosto, Wroe and Ory's participation, Tony Todd joined the cast. Later on August 30, comedian and actor, David Koechner was reported to have joined the cast. Koechner later updated via Twitter, "Hi I've joined the cast of Final Destination 5. I know I am suppose to die, but how about this? I'm pretending this is a sequel to Inception." The following day, P. J. Byrne was also announced to have joined the cast. On September 2, Emma Bell was said to be cast as the female lead; Molly Harper.
Later, in mid-September both The Bold and the Beautiful actress Jacqueline MacInnes Wood and Law & Order star Courtney B. Vance were have said to joined the main cast.

According to the source of E! News, Meghan Ory's character was originally to be in the film, but due to the conflict to her show True Justice(2011) she was forced to withdrew and dropped in the film, and her character was replaced by Jacqueline MacInnes Wood who is gonna portray Olivia Castle.

Filming and Production

Filming has been reset back to Vancouver, which is the location where the first three films were all shot. Shooting began in September 2010. Heisserer also confirmed that "5nal Destination" was not the official title via Twitter. For now, it's just to be called "Final Destination 5", as well as stating the title has been changed over dozens of times throughout production of the film. Producers have said that this installment will be darker (like the first film), as opposed to the almost comedic route that the 4th film took.

**The Lions Gate Bridge, setting of the opening cataclysm.**

Producer Craig Perry confirmed that there are no plans to go ahead with a new Final Destination film, but he has an idea for another sequel, raising the possibility of a fifth instalment. He said that combined with a now 3D installment, the film series started to look "cheesy in name alone" and like "another one of those" films a part of a dying or discontinued franchise, such as Leprechaun 4. He added that the word "The" in the title was to signify this as the last film in the series and that it is difficult to come up with "a fresh spin" for these types of franchises. However, the film turned a healthy profit and New Line greenlit another sequel. "Of course, Freddy had a Final Nightmare too, and that didn’t last very long," Craig Perry stated. "I do have an idea which would make it less expensive, but make it more interesting, [assuming] we’re fortunate enough to even have the conversation about what a fifth one would even be. I think that the fans in particular will appreciate the spin it puts on the notions." However, the head of Warner Bros., Alan Horn had confirmed a fifth Final Destination film is in works at Showest. It will be written by Eric Heisserer and directed by Steve Quale, and, according to Craig Perry, the film will be shot in 3D. Production of the film began in September. This also marks the long awaited return of recurring character William Bludworth, who is portrayed by Tony Todd. Also, Final Destination 3 star Chelan Simmons revealed that the opening dis

**The rumored scene where one of the survivors deaths have involving an eye surgery.**

aster will be filmed on the Lions Gate Bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The plot for the latest installment is being kept under wraps, though one scene involves a character undergoing laser-eye surgery (In this case Olivia Castle, who is portrayed by Jaqueline Macinnes Woods). Heisserer commented on the scene via his Twitter account. He wrote: "I got the job with two words: LASIK surgery." New Line is putting together a list of directors for the project, which would be shot in 3D for a release next year. Screenwriter Eric Heisserer tweeted the following: "Some FD5 trivia for my horror fans: One scene was so disturbing, everyone looked away from the monitors... except for the guy from Fangoria." With the movie already in post - production it has been revealed that the theatrical trailer will be released on the Monday May 9th episode of Attack of the Show at 7 ET.

External links Edit

Trivia

The movie takes place before Final Destination. Sam and Molly board Flight 180 as Alex and the other survivors are pulled off. The film serves as a loose prequel, as the only connection to Final Destination was the ending of the film.
This is the first Final Destination movie to not be released 3 years after the previous one; being released 2 years after The Final Destination instead.
This is the second Final Destination movie to be filmed in 3D.
Final Destination 5 marks the long awaited return of William Bludworth.
Final Destination 5 has 4 different posters, the most of the series.
Final Destination 5 also returns to the roots of where the first 3 movies were filmed; in Vancouver.
A test-screening of the film was held in Los Angeles, California on April 6th 2011.
The Final Destination 5 release date has been moved from August 26th to August 12th 2011.
Although the first four installments have alternated between the time of day of the opening disaster, this film's opening disaster is consecutive with the previous film's time of day; at daytime. However, this is a prequel to the first film, so, chronologically, the pattern is the same.
The trailer shows signs of there being a human killer as well as death, due to the fact that people have theories of how they can end, such as in the third movie, Ian claims that if the last person were to kill themselves, the whole chain would end, and in the second movie, if Isabella had the baby, everyone would survive. But Isabella survives the crash anyways, and Kimberly must get a new life.
Though the end of the movie suggests this was the end of the series, it was revealed that Final Destination 6 and 7 would be filmed back-to-back.
William Bludworth mentions that in order to survive and not cheat death, the survivors should take the life of another person for Death to completely or temporarily take them off the list. Since "Death, doesn't like to be cheated".
Craig Perry has confirmed via twitter that the DVD will have two alternate deaths.
- He also confirmed that William Bludworth is not death, and William Bludworth says he doesn't do it, he just cleans up when the game is over.
The opening disaster appears somewhat similar to the one featured in the comic Final Destination: Sacrifice.
The series alternates with the main characters being seniors and full grown adults. Final Destination 1 and 3's main characters are seniors going on their senior trip, and Final Destination 2 and The Final Destination's characters are mostly gully grown adults that are not in highschool. One would expect Final Destination 5's characters to be seniors as well as the first and third films, but this film broke that consitancy. However, again, this is a prequel. The pattern is not broken, chronologically.
All previous deaths and premotions are included in the ending credits.

Reception

Critical reviews

The film received generally positive reviews. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 61% of 125 critics have given the film a positive review, with an average rating of 5.8 out of 10, making it the first and as of yet only installment of the series to garner a "fresh" certification. The site's consensus is, "It's still only for the gore-thirsty faithful, but Final Destination 5 represents a surprising return to form for the franchise". On Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film a score of 50 based on 24 reviews. The film was criticized for failing to bring anything new to the franchise, weak character development, and average dialogue. Though the reception to acting has been largely mixed, most positive reviews praised the film for being an improvement over the previous installment in the series, The Final Destination. Reviews also praised the use of 3D, the visual effects, the inventive death scenes, the return of suspense as opposed to a campy feel, and for both the premonition disaster sequence and the ending.
Richard Roeper stated in his review "From the opening credits to the final kill this film displays a great use of 3-D." Todd Gilchrist of Boxoffice Magazine has declared the film in his review for being "the best 3D horror movie ever made." He described Final Destination 5 as "a clean, glossy thriller shot in native 3D (not post-conversion) that maximizes the technology without straining the audience's credulity or their constitutions." He also stated "Calling anything the 'best 3D horror film' has the ring of crowning the world's tallest midget, but Quale uses 3D almost shockingly well." In a review for Toronto.com, Linda Barnard has stated "this could be a case where the 3-D-shot movie is worth the extra few bucks to see".
The visual effects were praised for improving on the weak CGI from the previous installment. Betty Jo Tucker of ReelTalk Movie Reviews said in her review "The film boasts some of the best visual effects ever, especially the bridge-crumbling sequence at the beginning of the film." In his review of Final Destination 5, Roger Ebert said "...the special effects do an excellent job of beheading, incinerating, vivisecting, squishing and so on. "Final Destination 5 contain some of the most fun effects ever seen that purely enhance the thrills and bloody spills, rather than detract from them," stated Lisa Giles-Keddie from uk.real.com.
The death scenes in the film have been praised as being suspenseful, creative and shocking. Shockya.com said the deaths "are absolutely brilliant when it comes to building suspense". "The suspense comes from the ingenious methods that the characters meet their end" stated another reviewer from shockya.com. Boxoffice magazine said in praise "viewers connect to both the relatable pain of everyday injury and the gory gratification of a well-constructed, larger-than-life set piece."Nj.com has said "Admitted, there is a certain inventiveness to the way director Steven Quale stages the violence." San Francisco Chronicle said that the characters are "killed in gruesome and spectacular ways." The gymnastic set piece has been praised as "anxiety-filled", "a beautiful example of successful comic suspense", "Hitchcockian edge-of-your-seat suspense", and "inventively grotesque". Film.com stated in their review "The subsequent deaths are hit-or-miss, but they all show some creative spark. Quale sets them up like a cross between a joke and a magic trick, carefully establishing crucial details."
The opening bridge collapse has garnered considerable critical praise, with many stating it as being on par with the pile up sequence from Final Destination 2. It has been said to be "one of the single best sequences of any film all year" by Boxoffice magazine. Uk.real.com stated that the opening bridge collapse sequence is "beautifully directed and choreographed". Eric D. Snider has stated in his review for Film.com that "The opening premonition is nerve-janglingly effective." The New York Post has called the bridge collapse sequence "spectacular", and Daily News has call it "terrifying". USA today has commented on the sequence "The effect is terrific and reminiscent of the bridge destruction from Mission: Impossible III. " Betsy Sharkey, a Los Angeles Times film critic stated in her negative review "I will say, the bus, and the bridge it must cross, does make for a pretty incredible wham-bam opening sequence," she further adds "The big crumble is a stunner of an opener." In a review for MSN.com, Kat Murphy said "the fifth chapter starts out with a slambang catastrophe", then stated that the bridge collapse is "Skillfully orchestrated," and "this sequence is actually enhanced by 3-D: Holes in the disintegrating bridge seem to pull the gaze down -- dizzyingly -- to the river below, and jagged camera angles on hanging railings and sliding debris muddle our sense of what's up, what's down." The Hollywood Reporter praised "This film’s opening sequence is undeniably spectacular. "Aaron Hillis from The Village Voice called the bridge collapse "breathtakingly staged". The Advocate stated that "Director Steve Quale and writer Heisserer stage the bridge’s collapse in swift but exacting detail. " The Austin Chronicle said the bridge collapse sequence is "spectacularly gruesome".

Box office

Final Destination 5 ranked #3 at the weekend box office with $18.4 million behind Rise of the Planet of the Apes ($27.5 million), which holds the top spot for two weeks, and The Help ($25.5 million). It was also the third biggest Final Destination opening to date behind 2009's The Final Destination ($27.4 million) and 2006's Final Destination 3 ($19.1 million). So far as of September 16, 2011, Final Destination 5 grossed $41.9 million domestically, and a strong $76.3 million overseas, bringing its total to $118.2 million worldwide.

Sunday, February 26, 2012