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Ranking Final Destination Films

The Final Destination franchise has always been a bit trashy and sensational in its random freak deaths scenarios, but it is a rare series that quite recently actually progressed and became stronger than ever. It’s a very fun series of supernatural, brutal horror flicks that is very uneven in terms of quality, but consistently entertaining. Here is my ranking of all six Final Destination movies.

6. The Final Destination

The Final Destination is the fourth entry in this series and easily the nadir of the entire franchise. It just goes through the motions, repeating the plot of its predecessors while presenting no original ideas of its own. The cast is also mediocre, the technical aspects are weak, and even the set pieces aren’t all that memorable this time around. It’s such a bad sequel that deserves the last spot on this list undoubtedly.

5. Final Destination 3

With that one out of the way, from now on every single entry I at least liked. The third one is pretty close to its predecessor in the overall quality. It also has a stellar opening sequence and it derails from that point onward. Mary Elizabeth Winstead was excellent in the main role, but others are forgettable and its plot is pretty much a retread of what came before.

4. Final Destination 2

Final Destination 2 has a killer car crash sequence that was peak popcorn entertainment. It remains the greatest and most iconic scene in the entire franchise. This one was certainly at its best when it’s focusing on ridiculously contrived and complicated death scenes. But it was at its worst when it focused on its poorly constructed plot and characters. It’s a fun sequel that was perfectly serviceable overall.

3. Final Destination 5

The fifth entry was until recently the best sequel. Not only is that opening sequence truly epic, but most set pieces were so well executed here and they were also further elevated by solid build-up and suspense that were deftly incorporated. It’s a surprisingly well made and fun prequel that really worked. This was the point in the franchise when finally genuine suspense and craftsmanship were employed.

2. Final Destination

The first Final Destination movie is actually quite solid. This is one of the most underrated horror movies of its era, one that was needlessly criticized by reviewers, but is now a cult film that spawned this entire franchise. Yes, the second half is silly and even campy in its humorous approach. But the first half is genuinely suspenseful, deftly executing its intriguing high-concept idea. Devon Sawa was quite charismatic in the main role and the death scenes are all super creative and fun. It was a very solid beginning that would not be eclipsed for many years until…

1. Final Destination Bloodlines

Yes, the most recent FD movie tops this list with flying colors. This should be a textbook example of how to do these films going forward – write a storyline that is genuinely engaging and clever and actually develop your characters so that we feel their deaths when they happen. The family-centric twist to the formula was very smart and it gave extra layers to this concept. The result is a film that genuinely moved me in a couple of scenes. While the tone is a bit uneven and the third act a bit messy and cruel, the central mystery was surprisingly intricate and thoughtful. Against all odds, Bloodlines turned out to not just be the best Final Destination movie, but a genuinely great movie in its own right.