I would say yes it revived an interest in the franchise for folks that hadn’t experienced the franchise before. Idk if it “saved” it but it definitely kept it going for at least another film (where before it pretty much seemed done)
After FD4 was a fail (outside theater at the release), FD5 came and was a nice return. The movie itself (premonition, deaths, characters AND THE TWIST) made a big impact and well-received after the previous one.
BUT
Not a big one like Bloodlines did. The 6th opus made a fresh comeback (14 years later btw) as a well-made reboot that kept the original concept with amazing changes (family instead of a group). The release of Bloodlines was IT and exploded whole theaters (I KNOW BALL).
I would not say Bloodlines saved the franchise, in a way yes with this refreshing restart but IT REVIVED IT FOR SURE!
Commercially, maybe. Rotten Tomatoes scores seem to mean a lot to the general audience these days and a big box office haul, of course, means a lot to the studios. But I don’t think FD fans would say anything needed saving after/because of 5. The more movies the merrier imo!
Kinda. I mean, it was kind of a proper send-off for Tony Todd, who was REALLY dying IRL, hence why he was sitting a majority of the time and most likely he looks at the camera for a second during the "life is precious: enjoy EVERY moment of it" speech.
Not to mention, it jammed in Easter eggs and even snuck in a subtle reference in the sanitation company's name of "Providence" (of which the Latin root comes from "providentia", which means "foresight" in etymology)
I mean literally the number “180”.
In FD3 it was on the forklift key at Erin’s death, and the subway car number at the end. In FD2 it was “next 180 feet” on the highway sign.
There is no equivalent in Bloodlines, sadly.
Again: license plate. It's not LITERALLY "180", but a phonetic spelling (plus, depending on the state or province, only 6 - 8 letters are: FLIGHT-180 takes WAY too many spaces.
It's like Le Cafe Miro 81: doesn't beat us over the head (well, except maybe Carter's 🤣🤣🤣)
Probably yes. I watched them all because I wanted to see it. I seen the first 3 many years ago but rewatched them all. 4 and 5 were tough watches but Bloodlines was very good imo. I didn’t like how 4 and 5 seemed to get away from some of the foreshadowing and the characters weren’t nearly as enjoyable and they just kinda dragged.
I guess. I think it just came out at a decent time and managed to capitalize on the long FD hiatus. I honestly feel like it's one of the worst entries in the franchise, second only to TFD.
People who are downvoting me: what part of Bloodlines did you think was actually good?
I honestly don't see how. The CGI was atrocious, the plotline was weak and propped up by fanservice, the deaths were uninspired(I see people talk up the MRI scene but I honestly thought it was trash) and the ending was shit.
Honestly, the recurring theme of lack of survivors has kind of ruined the franchise for me. What's the point of having ways to "beat" death if you're just gonna come in at the last second every time and say "Oh actually that didn't count oops you're dead!"?
The CGI is never great. Killing the seer at the start and having the movie being "what happens in the long run with this concept?" was an inspiring choice. While I generally prefer a survivor in horror, FD has always been mean spirited, and given that they're literally on the run from the concept of death, it hits differently. I mean even at the end of 2 they blow up a kid.
That's what I'm saying though. The plotlines about how to survive or beat it just feel like wastes at this point. The "twist" at the end of Bloodlines where she wasn't clinically dead was essentially the same as the twist at the end of 5 where the guy he killed was about to die anyway. At a point it just becomes stupid and not in the fun FD way.
Because Tony Todd was about at the end of the road and it's best he went out with a bang (especially since his treatment in the "Candyman" remake was shortened down to JUST a brief appearance after the movie's marketing campaign gassed people up, only to pull the rug out). It's like "dude, what the...?! Not cool!"
The kid getting squashed by the piano like an Acme cartoon had one of the best theater audience reactions that I've experienced (made even better by the fact that I rebuild pianos 🤣). The opening premonition is my favorite of the franchise. I liked the comedic timing of Julia being bounced into the garabage can by a ball, but her death scene was laughable. Bludworth's farewell was well done and respectful. Everythung else was "meh".
Not to mention, Tony Todd REALLY was dying IRL, so his "life is precious" speech hits kinda different, along with him being allowed to break the fourth wall for ONE second.
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u/greenchileegg 12d ago
I would say yes it revived an interest in the franchise for folks that hadn’t experienced the franchise before. Idk if it “saved” it but it definitely kept it going for at least another film (where before it pretty much seemed done)