15 Films Audiences Got Right (But Critics Got Wrong)
5. Final Destination
Rotten Tomatoes: 34%
IMDb: 6.7
Is this some sort of joke?
Final Destination is not only a blast, but it's regarded as a minor horror classic and remains well-liked, so this preposterously low rating is frankly embarrassing.
Admittedly, FD is no masterpiece; the acting isn't the best and the story is perhaps a little flat, but it is an enormous amount of fun, it's well-made and the screenplay, with reasonable character development and well-handled exposition, is better than it's given credit for.
Reviews seem to criticize the film for being a shallow gore-fest, but that's all FD was aiming to be. To be fair to critics, this teen slasher film is probably not their kind of thing, but if you look past FD's overall silliness, what you've got is maybe the first horror classic of the 21st century.
The IMDb score is exactly right; it isn't up there with classics like Halloween or The Shining, but it is a jolly good ride. More recent reviews have been kinder, so the RT score is perhaps out of date.
Installments two and three (48%) and (45%) were also scored unfairly. The fifth film (61%) got a far fairer rating.
Should Be Rated: 65%-75%