There's a cold, brutal brilliance to this movie that I will never shake. It's utterly original (if perhaps loosely inspired by Se7en) and fiercely conceived, wound tight as a knot of barbed wire, in which every scene is connected and every beat suggestive of potential (and potent) psychological horrors. The pale gloom of fluorescent lights and backgrounds awash in green and blue create an atmosphere as grimy and unpleasant as the sets and dressing, littered with debris, sharp angles, and lots of spiky metal. Dismal, violent, and wickedly intelligent, the film torments us along with its characters even as we are made to begrudgingly appreciate the horrors we see. Things really aren't taken to their gory extremes here, and we're drawn in by the build-ups and the aftermaths if not always the climactic moments of death or dismemberment (thank goodness). In this way -- that is, both aesthetically and in terms of pure storytelling -- the first Saw is less exploitative than you might expect, except for its delicious, cruelly nihilistic ending, and far more cognitively entrancing.
Saw II (2005) ----- Score: 3.5 / 5
Saw III (2006) ---- Score: 2.5 / 5
The next two installments are fun enough continuations of the story established by the first Saw. In the second, Tobin Bell is fleshed out a bit, making the character more than a creepy puppet and invisible criminal mastermind. You might expect him to be less terrifying in the flesh, and perhaps he is, but Bell's performance is surprisingly chilling. Moreover, the story here is rather deliciously sadistic, pruning off the slower and more dramatic impulses of the first film and ramping up the suspense, gore, and psychological torment. It doesn't work as well for me, but it still a bloody good time.
In the third, what might be seen as a sort of finale to Jigsaw's trilogy, things get a bit weirder. Specifically, Tobin Bell returns but is given precious little to do, other than suggestively tormenting his apprentice, a repeat survivor-turned-acolyte named Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith). The central plot device -- that is, excuse for gore-porn -- is of a man obsessed with vengeance on the man who killed his son while drunk driving. He goes through several trials which mostly involve watching other people suffer and die in the name of hoping to finally get his revenge. Obviously there's a lesson to be learned, but this movie is notably more somber and less entertaining. The violence finally does feel exploitative and the lessons by now are not original or interesting. This movie is the death of Jigsaw and, for me, the franchise.
The next two installments are fun enough continuations of the story established by the first Saw. In the second, Tobin Bell is fleshed out a bit, making the character more than a creepy puppet and invisible criminal mastermind. You might expect him to be less terrifying in the flesh, and perhaps he is, but Bell's performance is surprisingly chilling. Moreover, the story here is rather deliciously sadistic, pruning off the slower and more dramatic impulses of the first film and ramping up the suspense, gore, and psychological torment. It doesn't work as well for me, but it still a bloody good time.
In the third, what might be seen as a sort of finale to Jigsaw's trilogy, things get a bit weirder. Specifically, Tobin Bell returns but is given precious little to do, other than suggestively tormenting his apprentice, a repeat survivor-turned-acolyte named Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith). The central plot device -- that is, excuse for gore-porn -- is of a man obsessed with vengeance on the man who killed his son while drunk driving. He goes through several trials which mostly involve watching other people suffer and die in the name of hoping to finally get his revenge. Obviously there's a lesson to be learned, but this movie is notably more somber and less entertaining. The violence finally does feel exploitative and the lessons by now are not original or interesting. This movie is the death of Jigsaw and, for me, the franchise.
Saw IV (2007) -----Score: 1 / 5
Saw V (2008) ----- Score: 0.5 / 5
In what I suppose was meant to be a clever follow-up by the same director, the story of Saw IV weaves its way around previous installments. It's an extended epilogue that feels like a sicko's fan fiction based on the premise that Jigsaw had "games" planned for after his own death. Apparently he had collected more victims-turned-friends (acolytes) who had been trained (brainwashed) into helping him spread his gospel (torture and murder), and the revelation of those folks is the mission of this movie. Other than the gruesome and notably uninspired death traps, the film falters in basic cinematography and editing techniques; it's almost incoherent in convoluted plot twists around characters we never know or care about. The only worthwhile thing in this movie is its very handsome leading man, Lyriq Bent.
We get more of the same crap in the fifth film, which follows the "hero" (last man standing) of the fourth into more traps and more sadistic games that make less sense as time continues. It becomes increasingly clear that someone is toying with him, and it's very probably a fellow officer (spoiler alert from the previous flick, which means the suspense in V is nonexistent: it is, and our hero is going to be the victim and scapegoat). I almost kind of liked the subplot this time around, in which five people are forced through a series of communal tests like in II and fail miserably. The dialogue is laughable, editing bizarre, and grimy aesthetic worn and unoriginal. This is grindhouse trash at its most base, and there's nothing here worth wasting your time.
In what I suppose was meant to be a clever follow-up by the same director, the story of Saw IV weaves its way around previous installments. It's an extended epilogue that feels like a sicko's fan fiction based on the premise that Jigsaw had "games" planned for after his own death. Apparently he had collected more victims-turned-friends (acolytes) who had been trained (brainwashed) into helping him spread his gospel (torture and murder), and the revelation of those folks is the mission of this movie. Other than the gruesome and notably uninspired death traps, the film falters in basic cinematography and editing techniques; it's almost incoherent in convoluted plot twists around characters we never know or care about. The only worthwhile thing in this movie is its very handsome leading man, Lyriq Bent.
We get more of the same crap in the fifth film, which follows the "hero" (last man standing) of the fourth into more traps and more sadistic games that make less sense as time continues. It becomes increasingly clear that someone is toying with him, and it's very probably a fellow officer (spoiler alert from the previous flick, which means the suspense in V is nonexistent: it is, and our hero is going to be the victim and scapegoat). I almost kind of liked the subplot this time around, in which five people are forced through a series of communal tests like in II and fail miserably. The dialogue is laughable, editing bizarre, and grimy aesthetic worn and unoriginal. This is grindhouse trash at its most base, and there's nothing here worth wasting your time.
Saw VI (2009) ----- Score: 0.5 / 5
Saw 3D: The Final Chapter (2010) ----- Score: 0 / 5
I suppose 4-6 constitute the sequel trilogy to the first three Saw flicks, and it's just disappointing, following Jigsaw's successor Hoffman working hard to continue the sadistic criminal legacy. The sixth makes pretensions to be relevant and interesting regarding the necessity of health care reform in America, but this isn't The Purge. Relevance in Saw is about as immaterial as the characters' lives; they're all only so much meat and blood. And then there's the seventh installment, a monstrous waste of time that insults long-time fans as well as its general audience. Its 3-D attempt at novelty squelches beneath muddied aesthetics and muddled storytelling, leading up to a finale that might have been a weirdly cool idea (Cary Elwes is back!) except that it's the exact same plot contrivance featured in every single installment of the series: someone "unexpected" is the real killer, a Jigsaw apprentice trying to carry on the sadistic legacy.
The series should have said "Game Over" a long time ago.
I suppose 4-6 constitute the sequel trilogy to the first three Saw flicks, and it's just disappointing, following Jigsaw's successor Hoffman working hard to continue the sadistic criminal legacy. The sixth makes pretensions to be relevant and interesting regarding the necessity of health care reform in America, but this isn't The Purge. Relevance in Saw is about as immaterial as the characters' lives; they're all only so much meat and blood. And then there's the seventh installment, a monstrous waste of time that insults long-time fans as well as its general audience. Its 3-D attempt at novelty squelches beneath muddied aesthetics and muddled storytelling, leading up to a finale that might have been a weirdly cool idea (Cary Elwes is back!) except that it's the exact same plot contrivance featured in every single installment of the series: someone "unexpected" is the real killer, a Jigsaw apprentice trying to carry on the sadistic legacy.
The series should have said "Game Over" a long time ago.
Jigsaw (2017) ----- Score: 1 / 5
Seven years later and almost no steps forward. When Jigsaw starts, I was expecting something a little different. The camera feels fresh, the atmosphere is a bit lighter, there's more explicitly stupid-funny dialogue. The kills are less gory and more absurd -- one involves being stuck in a silo, buried in grain and various sharp farm tools -- and I thought we might be in for a solid reboot. The story is structured in the same way as others in the series, with one plotline following a group of individuals getting tortured and murdered, and the other following law enforcement chasing down the big baddie. Unfortunately, this movie is exactly like the others -- read: more of the same trash -- in its excessive exposition, unwieldy plot turns, and pointless intrigue that leads to a climax in which yet another new accomplice or apprentice is unmasked. It doesn't help, this time, that there are major contrivances with the franchise timeline, as if that makes it more profound or interesting. Spoiler: it doesn't.
Seven years later and almost no steps forward. When Jigsaw starts, I was expecting something a little different. The camera feels fresh, the atmosphere is a bit lighter, there's more explicitly stupid-funny dialogue. The kills are less gory and more absurd -- one involves being stuck in a silo, buried in grain and various sharp farm tools -- and I thought we might be in for a solid reboot. The story is structured in the same way as others in the series, with one plotline following a group of individuals getting tortured and murdered, and the other following law enforcement chasing down the big baddie. Unfortunately, this movie is exactly like the others -- read: more of the same trash -- in its excessive exposition, unwieldy plot turns, and pointless intrigue that leads to a climax in which yet another new accomplice or apprentice is unmasked. It doesn't help, this time, that there are major contrivances with the franchise timeline, as if that makes it more profound or interesting. Spoiler: it doesn't.
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