In art, as in life, it is always good to stick the landing. You don’t want your final act to leave a sour taste. So, the optimal strategy is to quit while you’re ahead. In 2009, almost a decade since the first Final Destination shocked audiences, fate spared yet another group of people just for the ultimate showdown in The Final Destination.

When a group of college friends take in a day at the races, young Nick has a terminal prediction about a horrific disaster at the racing track. This perturbs Nick and his desperate attempts to get out causes a ruckus that gets him, and a couple of others kicked out. Sparing Nick, his friends and a small sample of the public from the car-based carnage that he predicted. When Death Strikes one of the survivors immediately, sends Nick off for answers. Similarities between the previous three films emerge, realising everyone is in danger, now Nick is in a race against time to stop Death, once and for all.

I get the impression that for this final instalment the makers wanted to go out with a bang. This instalment relies heavily on 3D effects and C.G.I. to deliver a spectacle heavy and carnage loaded kill fest that succeeds on all fronts. It’s a lot more C.G.I. focused than 3, but there’s a trade-off for subtlety and ambition Grandiose explosions that the group is subjected to.

Death has a twisted sense of humour and a sense of ironic justice, as not is he leaving hints but making literal play on words and oh so ironic kills Dragging a racist to death while the radio plays “why can’t we be friends” shows us a Death who isn’t afraid to laugh, a huge change of style from the Death of nine years ago. The film will also make you a lot more terrified of everyday objects as Final Destination 2 made you fear lifts, this one will also make you fear escalators, gas canisters, and even bathtubs and pool filters. Veterans of the franchise will surely be surprised by the fresh ways these objects can kill.

The Final Destination, like its name suggests, serves as the final full stop or the conclusion, offering a grim punchline to the cosmic joke that has been the fate of our poor protagonists for the four films. It would have been a good way to end the saga, and as the adage “quit while you’re a head” feels once again literal. This instalment serves as a send-off to a premise that kept audiences thrilled for a decade and piles on the gore in the process.

If you want more positive reviews delivered to the e-mail box of your choice, you can click on that little text bubble at the bottom of the screen. Do you agree or disagree? or have a suggestion for another pop-culture artefact that needs a positive light shone on it? Leave a comment in the comment box below! But remember to keep it positive!