Final Destination: Bloodlines Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

Final Destination: Bloodlines Blu-ray Movie Review

Death from above (and below).

Reviewed by Randy Miller III July 20, 2025

Final Destination has proven to be a reliable franchise ever since the first film hit theaters back in 2000, with its four subsequent sequels (through 2011, at least) not always increasing in popularity but all having decently consistent box office returns. I'm not exactly married to the series and thus can't rank them in order of preference... but no matter your experience level, Final Destination: Bloodlines is an accessible entry point, a solid reboot, and the most financially successful iteration to date despite the franchise's 14-year hiatus. (In other words, get ready for more.)

Final Destination 's flexible format has allowed plenty of room for creative kills that prompt first-time viewers to pay close attention, so correctly predicting the next potential death -- or getting fooled by a fake-out -- is just part of the experience. It's never been more evident than in Bloodlines, which expands the series' breadth while ratcheting up the detail in terms of ridiculous Rube Goldberg machinations. This time around it's a multi-generational affair, expanding the series' scope to that of an entire family tree threatened by a near-death experience back in 1968.

Bloodlines begins with an extended flashback to 1968, where young couple Iris and Paul Campbell (Brec Bassinger & Max Lloyd-Jones) are on a date at the grand opening of the luxurious Skyview tower, a first-class restaurant and club hundreds of feet in the air. Viewers are kept on edge during this otherwise celebratory event, which predictably ends in disaster when sloppy construction (and a wayward penny) makes the Skyview's "maiden voyage" not unlike the Titanic. After everyone dies spectacularly -- including Iris, Paul, and a boy named William -- it's revealed that said event was a recurring nightmare of college student Stefani Reyes (Kaitlyn Santa Juana) that's plagued her for several months and, as it turns out, Iris and Paul were her grandparents. Unable to sleep and failing most of her classes, she returns home to visit her dad (Tinpo Lee) and brother Charlie (Teo Briones), as well as cousins Erik (Richard Harmon), Bobby (Owen Patrick Joyner), and Julia (Anna Lore), the children of her uncle Howard (Alex Zahara), Iris and Paul's son.

Anyway, it turns out that Iris is still alive and she had the same premonition that fateful evening back in 1968, where she saved the lives of everyone in Skyview by warning them moments before disaster struck. That's normally fine and dandy, but not in Final Destination world: as a result of cheating death, the survivors met their "planned demise" days, weeks, or months later... that is, except for Iris and at least one other lucky person who outsmarted what we can only assume were hundreds of close calls. But here's the kicker: since Iris was pregnant at the time, impending death is now in the cards for her extended family as well. Hoping to somehow break the curse, Stefani's first task is convincing them she's not crazy. It'll prove to be quite the challenge, though, because Iris' lifelong paranoia -- which the family dismissed as crazy talk -- have all but closed their minds to anything involving doom and gloom.

Of course, doom and gloom is right around the corner for the Reyes and Campbell family. But it wouldn't be right to spoil those Rube Goldberg machinations hinted at above, ones that may or may not involve that same unlucky penny from 1968, broken glass, a ceiling fan, one big statue, a lawn mower, a garbage truck, a meteor, thousands of bees, a high-powered magnet, and dozens more objects that align themselves to maim, crush, and exsanguinate some or all of Steph's relatives. They give Bloodlines a solid amount of on-brand appeal and most situations are constructed carefully, meaning that even the most seasoned FD disciple probably won't be able to predict the outcome of every scene. And while certain elements of the story don't hold up to scrutiny at all, Bloodlines is still fun in a way that few horror films really are and should appeal to franchise fans and newcomers alike. Again, I only saw the first couple entries back in the day and had no trouble following along, but word has it that a few fun Easter eggs are in here.

Warner Bros. offers Final Destination: Bloodlines in three main home video options: a regular ol' Blu-ray, a 4K UHD, and a preferred Steelbook combo pack that actually has both formats in one handy package. All have comparatively solid A/V presentations as well as the same assortment of decent bonus features, so pick your poison.

Final Destination: Bloodlines Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

As usual, please see my recent review of the 4K edition for a basic overview of the film's overall aesthetic, which in this case is pretty front-loaded as far as flashiness goes. The opening scene at the Skyview offers luxury environments on a budget and decent, workmanlike period-specific production design, not to mention the majority of the film's biggest and boldest special effects. (In comparison, the later set-pieces and environments are mostly everyday, such as a hospital and tattoo shop, with older Iris' bunker-like home the only exception to that rule.) Although the native 4K presentation clearly looks better in UHD, Bloodlines still impresses on Blu-ray (as seen in these direct-from-disc screenshots) with robust image detail, good color representation, decent shadow detail, and a pleasingly consistent quality throughout. Those trace amounts of posterization and black crush are still present, of course, but no other encoding-related issues could be spotted along the way despite its comparatively lower bit rate. You won't get the increased resolution of 4K or the benefits of HDR10/Dolby Vision, but on small to mid-sized displays this Blu-ray should fit the bill.

Final Destination: Bloodlines Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Likewise, the Dolby Atmos mix is a capably solid effort with ample surround usage and great use of the overhead channels at key moments, even if large stretches of Bloodlines are fairly scaled back with nothing more than front-channel dialogue and light background ambiance doing the driving. The original score by Tim Wynn, which contains a few brief references to earlier Final Destination cues, also gets a solid amount of support at the right moments and frequently drifts into the rear channels for sonic contrast. Bottom line: things squish, explode, and burn in spectacular fashion on countless occasions, and each moment sounds as disturbingly over-the-top as it needs to. Although it seemed to be mixed slightly lower than my normal reference levels, once adjusted it brings the goods.

Optional subtitles, including English SDH, are included during the film and all applicable extras below.

Final Destination: Bloodlines Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This one-disc release ships in a keepcase with spooky poster-themed cover art and a few good to great extras.

• Audio Commentary - A commentary on a new release? Hey, I'll take it! Co-directors Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky sit down for this lively feature-length chat, which has a comfortable throwback vibe throughout as the duo talks at length about franchise history, assembling the cast, re-teaming with a few cast and crew members, Easter eggs for the franchise faithful, comparisons to previous entries, favorite kills and fake-outs, and much more. There's a bit of information repeated in later extras, but this one's well worth sitting through.

• Death Becomes Them: On the Set of Final Destination Bloodlines (6:11) - This brief and promotional behind-the-scenes featurette includes short comments from some of the crew and as well as the younger cast members, who all enjoyed the previous Final Destination films growing up and now I feel old. Not surprisingly, other franchise entries are seen and referenced as well, with plenty of connections made along the way.

• The Many Deaths of Bloodlines (7:26) - Co-directors Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky -- as well as several other returning cast and crew members -- take a look at some of the film's major death traps and all the visual planning that went into them, led of course by the fantastic opening Sky Tower sequence.

• The Legacy of Bludworth (5:24) - The late, great Tony Todd (seen briefly), flanked by many of the same returning participants, discuss his character and the recurring role he plays in the Final Destination films.

Final Destination: Bloodlines Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein (both new to the franchise) both make their mark with Final Destination: Bloodlines, which is at once an accessible entry point, a solid reboot, and the most financially successful iteration to date despite the franchise's 14-year hiatus. I enjoyed it quite a bit despite parts of the story and its rules not holding up to scrutiny, but I've got a feeling that time will be pretty kind to this one. Warner Bros. offers three main home video options for fans and newcomers: a regular ol' Blu-ray, a 4K UHD, and a preferred Steelbook combo pack, each with comparatively solid A/V presentations as well as the same assortment of decent bonus features. Recommended.