SAW

I want to play a game.... 

I feel I should put these films in perspective for you folks.  When Saw came out in 2004 I had just graduated high school.  When Saw VII, the (maybe until the returns come in) last one comes out this year I will have graduated college.  What, you haven't heard of the seven year plan?  Each year Lions Gate pumps out a Saw movie-If it's Halloween it must be Saw- right?  I really like that about this franchise.  Each year we get to return to theaters and see what Jigsaw and his friends have gotten themselves into.  Most genre fans have a slasher or monster that they've grown up with.  I was too young for Freddy or Jason, but I got Jigsaw.  The idea of a serial kidnapper/trap setter was one I really dug.  Jigsaw forces people to either appreciate their lives by fighting for them, or die.  Jigsaw had a philosophy and that, to me sets him apart from your Freddy or Jason, who mainly seem to be driven by revenge.  Jigsaw has a message. And an engineering degree.  And lots of warehouse property. And recording equipment. And that creepy doll.  And cancer. But I digress...

By now we all know the story: Two men wake up chained to what appears to be a truck-stop bathroom in Huntsville with a dead body between them.  One man is Adam (writer Leigh Whannell) and the other is Doctor Gordon (Cary Elwes).  In the dead man's hands are a revolver and cassette player.  The cassette player gives the two instructions on how to play the "game."The game involves Dr. Gordon killing Adam before the time runs out.  If he doesn't, his family will die. Oh yeah, and there are hacksaws.  Guess what those are for? (HINT: it's not the chains) Outside of the room Detective Tapp (Danny Glover, clearly too old for this shit) is pursuing a killer known as Jigsaw. Through a series of flashbacks, and I mean A LOT of flashbacks we follow the events leading up to Dr. Gordon's game and it all comes to a head down on Stygian Street. 

   Most people are so ungrateful to be alive. But not you, not anymore....GAME OVER!

  I liked how the movie drops you right into the middle of the action and then fills you in on what you need to know.  James Wan and Leigh Whannell crafted a very interesting story here.  You yourself start thinking about what you might do.  Shoot a guy? Maybe. Walk on busted glass carrying a candle while caked in flammable residue...ma...maybe?  Crawl through a room full of razor wire........what was the other option?  These traps are pretty inspired but have a creepy home-made look to them that left me thinking, yeah, these rooms could exist all over the place.  My favorite trap was of course the reverse-bear trap from the poster.  Just think of it: waking up with the taste of metal in your mouth and then seeing a video where a muppet reject shows you exactly how it works, and then CLICK.....60 seconds. Wow. Plus it was really great to see Shawnee Smith as Amanda, the sole survivor of Jigsaw's games.

I really dig the crew on this movie, actually all the Saw movies but the Australian duo of James Wan (director) and Leigh Whannell (writer) really broke into the horror scene.  I also enjoyed their Dead Silence.  If you're looking for a ghost movie that doesn't involve a brain stem, that's the one for you.  The duo sets up an atmosphere in Saw that makes you want to give your eyes a shower.  Everything is grimy and decaying, even the police station or the hospital.  

WHAT I LIKE

I like the look of Jigsaw.  He wears this strange red and black, boxing robe almost, but he looks like a murderer from a giallo film. Plus he's got a sword arm.    

I like that Cary Elwes accent comes and goes depending on how intense the scene is.  

I like that Detective Tapp could very well be Murtaugh after a few bad years. 

I like the scene where Zep uses a stethoscope and a gun to terrify Dr. Gordon's daughter. That's just mean man!

I liked that the Billy doll was creepier than the doll from Deep Red. 

I liked the soundtrack.  Charlie Clouser wrote a great score. Duh nuh nuh. NUH NUH NAH.

I liked how the ending made me feel confused, terrified, and confused. 

                      !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!OMFGWTFF???????????????????

This was a pretty gory, interesting, and most import original film.  That went on to spawn 6 sequels and counting.  This movie established a lot of the tenants (quick cut editing, twist ending, grimy atmosphere, worst car chases ever, playing with the timeline) that showed up in later sequels.  Stay tuned folks.  Saw II is next. Oh yes...there will be more blog posts.