Why So Blu?

Final Destination: Bloodlines (4K UHD Blu-ray Review)

After more than a decade in the coffin, the popular horror series is officially back—and Final Destination: Bloodlines makes it clear this franchise still has some life left in it. Or, more accurately, some very creative ways to take life away. Directed by Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein, this sixth entry doesn’t just pick up where things left off—it digs into the past to reframe everything we thought we knew. It’s the rare legacy horror sequel that feels both nostalgic and unexpectedly ambitious.

Film  

Back From the Grave

The story starts in 1969 with Iris Campbell (Brec Bassinger) having a full-blown premonition at the opening of the Skyview restaurant tower. She saves everyone, but Death, being the obsessive creep that it is, doesn’t take rejection lightly. Fast-forward to the present day, and college student Stefani Reyes starts having disturbing dreams about the same disaster—one that, technically, never even happened. As her visions escalate and family members start dropping like flies, it becomes clear: Death has a long memory, and it’s settling scores across generations.

Family Ties and Fatal Consequences

The biggest shake-up here is the idea that Death isn’t just stalking the survivors of one accident—it’s coming after an entire bloodline. That twist adds an extra layer of dread and makes Bloodlines feel more epic than its predecessors. It’s no longer just about escaping fate; it’s about inheriting it.

That said, the emotional stakes hit harder this time, especially through Stefani’s strained relationship with her family. Kaitlyn Santa Juana gives a solid lead performance—empathetic but not too wide-eyed—and Brec Bassinger is especially memorable in both timelines. Bassinger sells Iris’s quiet terror and resignation in a way that gives the movie unexpected emotional weight. You can tell the filmmakers are reaching for something deeper than just cool kills. And for the most part, they get there.

Slow Burn, Sudden Death

Pacing-wise, the film takes its time. The first act moves slowly, setting up both the 1969 incident and Stefani’s unraveling in the present. Some fans might get antsy waiting for the carnage to kick in, but once it does, it really pays off. The movie finds its rhythm about halfway through, when the kills begin in earnest and the tension escalates fast. If the early going feels a little too patient, it’s mostly in service of building atmosphere—and that atmosphere is thick with dread.

The Kills: Twisted, Tense, and Weirdly Beautiful

Let’s not kid ourselves. The real star of any Final Destination movie is Death’s Rube Goldberg machine of doom, and Bloodlines delivers. There’s a sense of craftsmanship in these death scenes that feels lovingly sadistic. One early kill involving a lawnmower is stomach-turning and shockingly intimate. Another standout involves a trash compactor that might make you avoid taking the trash out ever again. And the final sequence in a hospital MRI room? Absolutely deranged in the best way. Every kill is drawn out with maximum suspense—doors creak, nails loosen, wires buzz—and then… snap.

The filmmakers clearly had fun designing these elaborate set pieces, and the audience gets to share in that fun—right up until someone’s head gets pulped.

Tony Todd’s Final Goodbye

And then there’s Tony Todd. The man, the myth, the mortician. He’s back as William Bludworth, and it’s hard to explain how comforting it is to hear that deep, ominous voice again. This is apparently Todd’s final appearance in the franchise, and he gets a send-off worthy of his legacy. He’s used sparingly, which makes every moment count. His scenes have a quiet gravity that reminds you why this character—and this actor—has become such an essential part of the series. When he goes, it feels like the end of an era, even as the movie sets up a new one.

Final Thoughts

Final Destination: Bloodlines isn’t just a good return for the franchise—it might be the best one since Final Destination 2. It takes risks with its structure, adds emotional depth to the formula, and still gives fans the wild, gruesome payoffs they expect. The pacing may be a little too slow out of the gate, and not every character gets the attention they deserve, but once the machine starts moving, it doesn’t let up.

If this is a soft reboot, it’s a smart one. If it’s a final chapter, it’s a fittingly brutal goodbye. Either way, Bloodlines proves that even after all this time, Death still has a few tricks up its sleeve.

Video  

Encoding: HEVC / H.265

Resolution: 2160p

Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1

HDR: Dolby Vision

Layers: BD-66

Clarity/Detail: Final Destination: Bloodlines comes to haunt your 4K player with a pristine transfer. Filmed digitally, the crispness of the format leaves details front and center. Textures and colors are vibrant and clean. Stability is perfect, with no trouble from the limitations that digital filming can sometimes provide.  Black levels are rich, while the one shortcoming comes from some of the less fortunate digital effects now more apparent in the higher resolution.

Depth: Camera movement is always stable with imagery in foreground and background shots covering clear ground as focus moves in and out. Framing remains neat as well as the camera pans in any speed.

Black Levels: Black levels retain a deep dark edge without crushing out.

Color Reproduction: The color spectrum is wide and often very bright.  The neons of the tattoo shop later in the film contrast with the stark grey of the weather in the scenes at Iris’s compound.  The dark morgue scene shows a deep contrast, where the opening sky tower sequence shows all types of beautiful daylight hues.

Skin Tones: Flesh tones are natural, save for some funny looking CGI moments.

Noise/Artifacts: None

Audio

Audio Format(s): English Dolby Atmos, French, Spanish, Czech, Polish – Dolby Digital 5.1

Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish

Dynamics: For a horror film, the Atmos mix is mostly a subtle affair.  However those subtleties are used with a wonderful light touch that compliments the tense creepy moments.  When needed, the track amps up and delivers where it counts. Deep bass and surround activity highlight ever gruesome kill, and squishy sound of death you could imagine.

Height: Height speakers do their due diligence in the opening sequence and the ending moments best of all.  They also deliver in the final showdown, with object surround activity appearing as movement pans around the room!

Low Frequency Extension: Bass digs deep in more destructive moments and more frenetic kills.  The bass extension also works well with score cues too, especially with those jump scares!

Surround Sound Presentation: Surround channels help spread out the score, open up the sound stage and of course, you get plenty of ambience in those rear channels too.

Dialogue: Dialogue is always intelligible throughout.

Extras

Final Destination: Bloodlines comes to 4K with a standard 4K + Digital Code configuration as well as the same combo in an eye-catching Steelbook. Extras on-disc are scant but fans of the series will love the lively audio commentary included.

Bonus Features:

• Audio Commentary – with Co-directors Adam Stein and Zach Lipovsky

• Death Becomes Them: On the Set of Final Destination Bloodlines (6:11)

• The Many Deaths of Bloodlines (7:26)

• The Legacy of Bludworth (5:24)

Summary

Final Destination: Bloodlines will likely delight horror fans and franchise fans alike! Newcomers to the series will find something to enjoy as well, and they won’t need to take a deep dive into the series to become versed in the lore of the series either.  As a final tribute to the late Tony Todd, his brief appearance is a nice appendix to a career well acted.  The film is a gruesome, often funny, quick and nasty bit of modern frightful fun that lovers of the genre will want to gobble up.  Here’s hoping if the series continue more entries will follow in this one’s footsteps.

Buy a copy of Final Destination: Bloodlines HERE

Buy the Final Destination: Bloodlines Steelbook HERE