Back in 2000, I saw the film Final Destination in theaters.  The film had dealt with a teen that had a premonition of his friends dying in a plane crash, and he was able to convince them not to board.  Of course, the plane actually goes down in the film, and from this point his friends seem to start to get killed off one by one in horrific "accidents".  Final Destination spawned two more sequels and has proven to be a successful franchise.  However, a little known film entitled Sole Survivor follows a strikingly similar plot even though it pre-dates Final Destination by 17 years.  Here’s my review of Sole Survivor from its release through Code Red DVD.

I had mentioned in my review of Doom Asylum that the Code Red DVD label was undergoing a change in distributors.  This marks the first film that they’re releasing under their new distributor BCI.  Will there track record of releasing quality DVDs hold up?  Lets find out.

The Plot:

Washed-up actress Karla Davis wakes up one night with visions of an impending plane crash in which everyone on the flight dies with the exception of a woman named Denise Watson.  Denise happens to work at the talent agency that Karla is involved in, and Karla attempts to warn her agent about the incident that she sees forthcoming.  This of course is immediately dismissed by her agent due to her history of ranting and raving about such things.

We soon find out that just as Karla predicted, the plane had crashed and its passengers have perished with the exception of Denise.  She handles this ordeal remarkably well, however after several "near miss" accidents and incidents involving strange figures, it seems that she isn’t quite as lucky as she originally thought.  It looks like Death’s minions have come to make Denise per her debt, and they’re not afraid to take a few others with them. 

The DVD:

•  Image
  • Considering the source material and the fact that Sole Survivor was made on a budget of $350,000, the video quality is actually pretty exceptional.  There are parts of the film where the colors seem to be a bit washed out, but this is hardly noticeable.  It’s also presented 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen which is certainly a deluxe treatment for a film like this.   8 out of 10

• Sound
  • The film is presented in mono and the track seems to hold up pretty well.  Not cracks or pops that I noticed at all.  However, I should point out that the audio track seemed quite low on my system.  I had to turn it up a few notches to hear the dialogue, but if you have a decent system this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.  7 out of 10
    

• Extras
  • Extras include the original trailer for the film, as well as trailers for upcoming films from Code Red DVD.  I always enjoy these, probably because of the high cheese factor in some of them.  Other extras include an interview with actor Caren Larkey (who plays the role of Karla) and executive producer Sal Romeo, an introduction from Caren, and a commentary track.  These extras are pretty informative, and I’m a sucker for trailers, so this gets a    7 out of 10

The Bottom Line:

I first heard of Sole Survivor through a minor buzz across some of the horror boards I read.  Many posters were anticipating its release, and some had mentioned its similarities to Final Destination.  After viewing the film, the similarities are pretty apparent.  You have the plane crash, the premonition, and the "close calls" which exist in both the films.  I wouldn’t say that Final Destination was a direct rip-off of this film, but it had generously borrowed more than a few ideas.  Hell, the linear notes in the DVD point out that director Thom Eberhardt may have even checked with his lawyer on the matter.  However, to Final Destination’s credit, Sole Survivor isn’t a slasher film (I often think of Destination as a sort of "invisible slasher") as it relies more on ambiance then jump scares or gore.

But enough about Final Destination, lets get to the film at hand.  Sole Survivor is a film that has its fair share of eerie atmosphere.  The people that stalk Denise are the living dead, however they’re not presented in zombie form.  They appear as ghostly, expressionless figures which I believe are far more effective.  These figures are often times unknown to the viewer, and their only explanation to their existence is that appear to have a sole purpose of bringing Denise face to face with death. 

Even though the premise of the film is very good, there are some minor gripes I have.  The actress that plays Denise is all over the place.  She’s incredibly upbeat in the beginning of the film despite the fact that she was involved in a ghastly tragedy.  Also, she delivers some out of place cheesy lines here and there.  Another thing is the part of Karla, the psychic actress down on her luck.  Her story isn’t explored at all, but I guess her purpose was to be the stereotypical clairvoyant who also happens to be the bringer of really shitty news.  There’s also a minor love interest story that doesn’t lead to much at all.  Things like this are to be expected though, considering the budget, time frame, and actor experience.

Overall, Sole Survivor manages to bring the dread associated with life and death in an effective manner.  The atmosphere that the picture possesses is enough in itself for one to see the film.  This film marks a successful return of Code Red DVD, and I hope their future releases live up to this quality. I enjoyed this movie despite its predictable flaws and I recommend that you check it out too, Final Destination be damned.

7.5 out of 10

Technorati Tags: Horror, DVD, Sole Survivor, Code Red, Final Destination, death, living dead, review