Saw 1-7 Movie Reviews: I Want To Play A Game

"Saw 8" (also called "Jigsaw") hits theaters on October 27. In preparation, now might be a good time to look back at the rest of the franchise. I watched all seven movies again in one sitting. No, I dont have a life. Thanks for asking. "Saw" was released in 2004. "Saw VII" (also know as "Saw 3D: The Final Chapter") was released in 2010. All premiered right before Halloween.

"Saw" is considered part of the "torture porn" genre. This is a subcategory of horror that is ultraviolent, gory and often involves torture (hence the name). Other examples include: "Hostel", "I Spit On Your Grave" and the granddaddy of them all "Cannibal Holocaust".

The "Saw" franchise has been very successful. It cost $65 million to make the seven movies. Worldwide they have grossed $878 million. Not a bad chunk of change.

The Story:

The premise of the movies is pretty simple. John Kramer (excellently portrayed by Tobin Bell) is "Jigsaw". He traps people who dont appreciate their lives. Jigsaw forces them to play a series of elaborate mechanical "games" to see how much they want to live. If they survive, they are instantly rehabilitated. No surprise that most people do NOT make it out alive. We dont learn much about Jigsaw until the second movie (so more of him later).

As the series begins, two men (Larry and Adam) awaken in a filthy bathroom in an undisclosed location. Each is chained to a pipe. There's a dead body in the room. This is where most of the action of "Saw I" takes place. It's basically a locked room mystery.

They have no idea how they got there. At first the two dont seem to know each other. Important facts are later revealed. Larry is a doctor (who diagnosed John's terminal cancer). He has to kill Adam by a certain time or his wife and child will be murdered. I wont give away all the details. Suffice to say, someone is going to lose a foot.

As the series progresses, the tests become more and more elaborate. Detective Eric Matthew (Donnie Wahlberg) has a son who is locked in a game with seven other people. They're all low lives for one reason or another. They must escape before they're all gassed. Another test involves five people who must work together as a team in order to survive. A grieving father (Jeff Denton) must decide what to do with those involved in his son's death (this one is kinda sad). Then there's a team of insurance agents and their crooked boss. He would not approve the experimental medication John needed. Therefore he must decide who lives and dies in his group. Another guy (Bobby Dagen) writes a book about his encounter with Jigsaw. The only problem is it's a big old lie. Guess what's going to happen to Bobby?

The Structure:

Despite having seven installments the movies are surprisingly cohesive. While Jigsaw dies at the end of movie 3 he lives on in the following movies due to extensive use of flashbacks. They reveal more and more of his past actions. This allows us to revisit the same events and peel back new layers each time. It's very well plotted. I don't know of any other horror film that even bothers to try on this level. We also learn over time about Jigsaw's assorted apprentices-- drug addict Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith), Dr Lawrence Gordon, short lived Zep Hindle, detective Mark Hoffman and John's wife Jill.

The Traps:

The elaborate death instruments are one of the best features of the movies. Many have something to do with why Jigsaw picked the person. A listing of all 52 traps is here at Craveonline and at "Saw's" wikia page Sawfilms.wikia.com My favorite is the reverse bear trap--- very frightening (especially if you're stuck in it). The pit of syringes is also pretty rough. The pig vat is WAY disgusting. Let's face it. I don't want to be anywhere near any of them. Seventy six people have died from the traps according to DailyDoseOfHorror.com (so you can see the odds of surviving are not good).

Jigsaw In Popular Culture:

Jigsaw has crossed over into popular culture. Practically everyone know what "I want to play a game means". Most can identify Billy the Puppet. He apparently was a toy that John purchased for his unborn son Gideon. It's a little guy on a tricycle. Jigsaw uses it to deliver messages and generally terrorize his victims (er, I mean test subjects).

There are some HILARIOUS spoofs of Billy on the Internet. See "Living With Jigsaw" here and "Working With Jigsaw" here This seriously needs to be a series! Chris Capel-- you sir are brilliant!

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). "Saw" was one of the first mainstream movies in the torture porn category. I typically dont enjoy such shows but I like the intricate traps. Through seven movies, the story is quite cohesive. It has lots of twists/turns and continually builds out it's mythology through the use of flashbacks. Overthinkingit.com has an excellent analysis of this here

My only criticism is that I'd like to see more traps. Hopefully e'll get a ton more good ones in "Saw VIII".