I was introduced to the Final Destination franchise via DVD rental. When the first film hit the video stores, I took it home and watched it, alone. It was a thrill;part mystery, part horror, all fun. This was early in the life of my original DVD player and the concept of being about to watch original endings and cast commentaries was fresh and new and exciting.

Through all these bonus features, I learned that Final Destination wasn't meant to be an open-ended leadin to a multiple film franchise. It was a single story that suggested death can be defeated by new life.

But that, apparently, was not what test audiences wanted. And, instead, we've been treated to a series ofmore and more elaborate death scenes, each less likely than the last.

The reason the original film stuck with me was because the deaths were based around phobias and urban legend. The chain of events that led to them were somewhat simple, perhaps being nudged by the hand of Death, but just a touch.

The latest installment has Death slapping everyone on the back like a drunk friend at a party. “Check this one out!” Death shouts, then sloshes beer all over your new sofa.

There is the reasonable argument that The Final Destination serves as a spoof of its predecessors. The carnage is comparable to a Tarantino film, while the script reads like a first year screenwriting student's rejected pages that were recycled into the printer and then accidentally flipped over and submitted as Final Destination 4.

There are nods to the original film,including a shout out to Clear Rivers, but they only made me realize how long we've been beating a dead franchise. The first time around, the idea that a group of people escaped death, only to have it chase them down, engaged the audience. We didn't know if everyone would die or if they might break the chain or what was even causing it all to happen in the first place.

Three installments later and the mystery is gone. The plot is simply a redundant, “OMG, death is coming! Ihad a vision!” Apparently, none of the forty-three million dollar budget was spared on additional writers.

Instead it went to some of the most elaborate and inventive death scenes in the series. This is where the 3D makes the movie (and also allows “3D” to double in meaning as three dollars, the additional cost to one's ticket). Explosions and protrusions abound and, to be fair, the technology is used well and makes for a fun romp. But, in the end, all the in-your-face gore proves to gross out more than scare.

It's hard to be genuinely terrified when the scenes are comparable to an action movie. I still have vivid memory of certain death scenes from the first and second films,because they frightened me. I am, to this day, nervous driving behind a tractor trailer carrying large logs. And I've always had a bit of an airplane phobia, which is likely why the original film has remained with me for so long.

This latest film leaves too much to chance and features an industrial fan blowing a loaded flat bed cart across a room. It's, as one of my movie going companions said, like a game of Mousetrap. Only with combustibles.

Speaking of which, why would anyone store multiple drums of “Spontaneously Combustible” (yes, they were labeled) materials in a movie theater?

Overall, it was fun in the moment, but not memorable over time.

And, if you really want to be disturbed about someone getting stuck on a pool drain, read Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk. THAT will stick with you.