It's day 4 of Halloween movie week and a mere 3 days until the big day itself. Hope you've got your costumes sorted. If you see any zombie mimes rampaging around on Saturday night come and say hi. I won't say hi back but I will wave.
Day 4 - Final Destination 2
Apart from the Saw films there aren't a massive number of recent horror films that have spawned a true legacy of cinematic sequels. A decent few have had a bit of life in the straight to DVD arena but these are easy to ignore. Final Destination is one of the few horror films in recent memory that can seriously lay claim to starting a real franchise and I'm going to be controversial here because I don't even think it was the best one.
I'm not going to disrespect Final Destination here. I think if anything you want to double bill these two. It's a genius concept - death relentlessly pursuing those who've managed to escape its clutches leading to a series of inventive and gruesome deaths. The plane crash of the original is genuinely quite disturbing although I'd say the sheer scale of the car crash in FD2 outdoes it. It also has one of my favourite deaths of the entire series when the girl is hit by the bus - classic sucker punch. The plot of the original is also a great deal clearer with 2 throwing in a few confusing twists to do with defying death (Though there is a decent attempt to link the films together seemingly abandoned in the following sequels). Yet, I'd say the second is by far the most entertaining of the two films on the strength of its death sequences alone. You can see the filmmakers are far more comfortable with the concept and each gory end is its own mini masterpiece. From the ladder through the eye to the fence dismembering to the flattening with the plane of glass this film has a pitch black sense of humour.
With the sheer glee in which the characters are picked off you have to decide who you're rooting for. It might be a little morbid but I think it's more fun to side with The Reaper.
FILM NERD FACT - The original film was written as a spec for the X-Files. Mulder & Scully vs Death - pretty awesome high concept!
The above pic is from the novelization of the film. Seriously. Who the fuck is going to buy that?
I had to hand back my keys today. I finished my contract as a Temporary Facilities Assistant and I am no longer a white van man or a deliverer of milk. Anyone who wants to give me a non sexual job please get in touch. Jobs involving use of a white van preferred.
Peace,
Steve
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