Final Destination Bloodlines [Film Review]

Final Destination Bloodlines
‍Released: May 15, 2025

Directors: Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein
Starring: Kaitlyn Santa Juana, Teo Briones, Richard Harmon, Owen Patrick Joyner, Rya Kihlstedt, Anna Lore, Brec Bassinger and Tony Todd.

It's hard to fathom death has been stalking victims in the Final Destination franchise for 25 years now. With each entry, new and inventive ways to kill off unsuspecting characters are introduced - some hit the mark and instil fear amongst viewers for decades (looking at you log truck), and others merely serve as carnage candy for the horror fanatics among us to laugh in utter disbelief that something so sinister was conceived in a Hollywood studio. By now if you're coming into the series for the plot, you're gonna have a bad time... but if you love watching fresh actors get hacked up, squished and pulverised into a bloody heap, well settle in kids.

This time around, we're taken back to 1968 where Iris Campbell (Brec Bassinger) and her fiancé Paul (Max Lloyd-Jones) head along to the opening of the brand new Skyview Tower Restaurant - a fancy sky high dinner and dance party for the rich and notable - complete with breathtaking views, glass dancefloor and an overwhelming sense of doom lingering at every turn. The typical Final Destination opening scene plays out just as you'd expect - little things start going wrong and turn into bigger problems for the 100+ guests who were brave enough to venture to the over-capacity hangout and before you know it, chaos erupts and everything turns to shit.

However, instead of Iris snapping out of the premonition, we're met by screaming college student Stefani Reyes (Kaitlyn Santa Juana) who wakes up mid-scream in the middle of a lecture. Turns out Stefani has been enduring horrific nightmares through the eyes of a grandmother she hasn't met. Not the kind of trauma you'd want passed down from older generations. Instead of bottling it up like the rest of us, she sets off back home to dig a little deeper into her family history - which is much more complicated than you'd expect.

After reconnecting with her father, brother, distant cousins and Aunt and Uncle, she's put on a path to track down her estranged Granny to try and figure out what's wrong with her. Unfortunately, Granny Iris (Gabrielle Rose) has been shunned from the family for being a little too obsessed with preventing death and has exiled herself from the rest of the world in a doomsday cabin stronghold in the middle of nowhere. Following some fast paced exposition and an important message to look out for signs - followed promptly by our first bit of fresh bloodshed - the fun really begins as Stef hits the books to cram as much intel from her grandmother's life and start the penultimate task of convincing the rest of the family they're in danger and that she's not the new headcase of family.

Now, we've all endured family gatherings and reunions, but none as painful as the one you're about to witness when Stefani and her brother Charley (Teo Briones) are reunited with their estranged mother Darlene (Rya Kihlstedt) right before their uncle Howard (Alex Zahara) meets a fate many of us have envisioned happening at any given moment. I will admit, the tension leading up to the backyard blood spill will have you on the edge of your seat, but if you've already seen the trailer, you'll feel cheated out of the pay off. Why do trailers spoil all the good stuff?

Without going into every gritty and gory detail - Stefani convinces the family tree they're all in danger, simply because they were never supposed to be born to begin with - and what follows is a story of survival of the... well, not fittest, but least stupidest in the family would be better suited to describe the antics that ensue.

In terms of the plot, it all feels a bit same same during parts... so if you're new to the series, you'll play along and grip your seat like there's no tomorrow. For those of us who have been here since the early beginnings, you'll at times feel like you've already seen this film before with several points taken directly from Final Destination 2.

However, if you don't watch porn for the plot and you don't watch Final Destination for the storyline, there's a handful of kill scenes which will have you repulsively grabbing your titties in disgust or laughing hysterically at the sheer stupidity of the shituations the characters find themselves in this time around.

While the ways in which death comes for his victims aren't as intricate or tension building like previous entries, there'll be one or two (at most) which will stick with you as you age and live your life to the fullest.... for now. Tony Todd's short but glorious cameo (and final role before his own untimely passing) will pull on your heartstrings more than any of the character development in the flick, especially that of the main protagonist. It's also much more enjoyable than The Final Destination (#4), but not by much.

Want to switch your brain off and watch the bodies hit the floor? Head along... if you dare.

Rating: 2.5/5

Review by Paul ‘Browny’ Brown @brownypaul

Final Destination Bloodlines is exclusively in Australian cinemas now.
Get your tickets here