SAW, 2004
Movie Reviews!

Obsessed with teaching his victims the value of life, a deranged, sadistic serial killer is abducting morally wayward people and forcing them to play macabre games for their own survival. Faced with impossible choices, each victim must struggle to win back his/her life, or else die trying… A young man named Adam (LEIGH WHANNELL) wakes to find himself chained to a rusty pipe inside a decrepit subterranean chamber. Chained to the opposite side of the room is another bewildered captive, Dr. Lawrence Gordon (CARY ELWES). Between them is a dead man lying in a pool of blood, holding a .38 in his hand. Neither man knows why he has been abducted, but instructions left on a microcassette order Dr. Gordon to kill Adam within eight hours. If he fails to do so, then both men will die; Dr. Gordon’s wife, Alison (MONICA POTTER), and his daughter will also be killed. Recalling a recent murder investigation by a police detective named Tapp (DANNY GLOVER), Dr. Gordon realizes he and Adam are the next victims of a psychopathic genius known only as “Jigsaw.” With only a few hours left to spare, they must unravel the elaborate puzzle of their fate in the midst of mounting terror. The killer has provided them with only a few clues and two handsaws - too weak to break their steel shackles, but strong enough to cut through flesh and bone…

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REVIEW:

The original groundbreaking horror film. Shot on an indie budget in 18 days…in one location…with no rehearsals. The director didn’t even take an up front fee, but opted for a percentage of the gross. Can you say “smart idea?” Listen, regardless of the impression you may have from the continuous production of films in this franchise, this film is incredibly groundbreaking and well done. It’s an elevator or submarine film in the horror genre. That itself is bold, risky, original and ingenious.

Directing: While the film overall is successful in all points, I can’t shake the notion that James Wan was still very green directing this film. From the actors rehearsals, to the editing (which I’ll get to) and the handling of some of the lesser important scenes.

Cinematography: Well done for the most part. At this point in time I’ll only speak to the color use, lighting and shot design – not the frame rate or how some scenes were shot. I’ll get to that in editing. The color tone and lack of clean up in post production lends itself to the film overall. It creates a mood that matches the subject matter in the film. Dark, grungy, dirty, disgusting and gory. It’s almost like a 70’s grindhouse film shot in modern day.

Production Design: You have to hand it to them, there are no CGI shots in this film at all. The production design really stepped up in creating the traps and sets. They created a world that helps the audience suspend their disbelief so they can be involved in this horrific environment.

Editing: Ok, my real only beef with this film falls here. The editing is intended to be stylistic and cover problems from production / the script. The problem that lies here is that it becomes extremely annoying and almost downright laughable at points. You see a car chase with black backgrounds and shaking vehicles with the actors doing horrible “chase scene” acting. It really stands out in a negative way and exposes the lack of money or care put into some of the insignificant scenes. The only reason they get away with it is because of exactly that, the moments that they occur in are really insignificant. So in my opinion….just cut them out.

Score: Is there a score to this film? I’m never sure. Everytime I watch it I never notice if there is a score undermining everything – which I’m sure there is. And that’s a great thing. Sure, you want something iconic that leaves you with an impression of the film and we get that in the finale sequence. But for the rest of the film, it subtly enhances the emotions of each scene.

Special Effects: The production design steals the show. Every trap is well thought out and believable. And it really gets under your skin to make you squirm. It’s effective and keeps us in this world. Hats off to the team for this one.

In closing: The original Saw is tainted by it’s franchise. Don’t let it fool you, this film is several steps above the rest and worth checking out. Yes, it’s gory and you may need a puke bucket next to you if you aren’t used to seeing things like this. But the story is overall horrifying and well done. It’s a great thriller / mystery / horror film for the modern age.

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