Saw 4 - Review

As mentioned in my previous blog entry I was inspired to watch this by checking out the advance publicity for the next in the series, it was one of those DVD's that I had bought and left on the shelf, to watch someday. It got forgotten when I gave up on the franchise after watching number 3, and as I grew increasingly weary of the assembly-line release of still more films, as the tagline says "you think it is over, but the games have just begun." Finally motivated to watch it I slipped the disc in on a lonely night this Saturday and was quite surprised, but pleasantly. The movie was nowhere near as bad as I feared, actually holding my attention quite well and not seeming at all like the waste of time I'd expected, half poised to switch off before the end. Don't get me wrong there are flaws (I'll get to that) and this is far from a great or classic movie, and to be honest if you aren't a Saw fan then you might as well take a star off my eventual score, likewise if you haven't seen any of the movies then take away 2, this is not the place to start. That said I quite enjoyed it.
(SPOILER ALERT – If you haven’t seen Saw 4 and ever plan on coming to it fresh then stop reading right now!).
Let's start with the problems, the films now seem increasingly reliant on gore and torture leading to new ways of showing blood, guts, body parts etc at the expense of plot. There is more attention to the "Eurgh" response which annoys me as a viewer who likes at least some plot to back it up. From an opening autopsy scene which actually had me shouting to get on with it to traps so ridiculous and jarring they hold up to no analysis and seem designed for pure shock value only. Similarly while the plot is good in some ways, that I shall mention, the same flaws are still present that I mentioned in my Saw 2 review, even 2 films later. These include inescapable traps, nonsenscial motivations, and shocks and surprises which contradict and confound. Anyone wanting to pick the plot of this apart has an easy job.
Despite that though it has more of a plot thread than I was expecting. This time we follow SWAT Commander Rigg in his personal test (not dissimilar to how the whole of Saw 2 was ultimately a test for Detective Matthews (who makes a welcome and fairly cool return). Along the way we cleverly but not bafflingly follow various non-linear strands including the investigation of an apparent accomplice to the now deceased Jigsaw and Amanda, and crucially and brilliantly John Kramer's motivation for becoming the serial killer Jigsaw and his very first trap (it has a purpose, this is all stuff that was touched upon or detailed in the graphic novel spun off from the earlier films but so cool to see, actual character stuff I was not expecting).
The traps themselves do the job they are there for I guess, naturally some ennui has set in by now so some fall short while others seem to border on genius (I loved the woman being connected to her husband by steel rods through his major arteries but not hers so she held his fate in her hands, that's the kind of poetic justice that makes the villain so much more interesting than the hack, slash, gore factor). To be avoided are traps like the opening one where two people are pitted against one another, in this case deprived of different senses, but one has to die.
As things conclude it's jarring but great when we see cameos from people across all previous movies in the flashback pieces, until eventually we see that these events are playing out simultaneously with those from the third movie (the only way they can make sense really). That said the final reveal of Detective Hoffman as the heir to the legacy and our new villain seems like an attempt to replicate the effect of the same reveals of Jigsaw in the first movie and Amanda in the second, it fals short and is a bit confusing (though I read this is cleared up in the next film, which I do plan to buy and watch, being quite psyched for the next 2 now). It reeks of wanting to keep the franchise running despite killing off the guy who made it, thus emphasising how dumb this was!
Overall an enjoyable piece if you don't overthink it, better if you've been following all the films and paying attention but for me...

*** (3/5)

MM

Review - Saw 2

Hello again fear mongers. Mr B and I decided on an impromptu horror double bill when hanging out last night and now Im sharing the resulting thoughts, views and opinions with you faithful few frighteners. Stay tuned for a special piece on Texas Chain Saw Massacre (the remake) in a style you haven’t seen before but first our more traditional thoughts and my review of the first film we watched, Saw 2.
I was surprised I talked Mr B into this but my excitable descriptions of pieces I recalled (I remembered quite digging this before) convinced him, so in the disc went, we munched on petrol station snacks, as has become the norm, and the logo’s played, much to Mr B’s approval, oh how things went downhill from there.
The film opens with a trap in progress (SPOILER ALERT – If you haven’t seen Saw 2 and ever plan on coming to it fresh then stop reading right now!). This involves a hapless victim having to gouge out his eye to retrieve a key to a death “mask” laden with spikes which will snap shut on him in a few seconds. Supposedly this is his poetic justice for having used his peepers to spy on people as an informant. I’m not ashamed to say I still think this scene and trap are incredible, you truly feel for the guy and put yourself in that horrendous position, the first thing through my mind being that I couldnt do it, pondered every time I see him reach for the eyeball with a blade. This also struck me as quite clever, it’s misdirection in a sense since you’re expecing an Un Chien Andalou style eye slicing but it doesnt happen, you’re left reeling as a viewer, disgusted by the idea of it but wanting it to happen so the poor guy can free himself, it’s almost cathartic and relieving when the mask snaps shut, reminiscent of a scene in Mask of Satan, a reference for the hardcore horror fanatics. Mr B looked nonplussed here but his opinion wasnt shared so on we ploughed.
We next launch into exposition setting up the cop characters, once Mr B had got over who both actors were (despite initial disbelief that it was Marky Mark Wahlberg’s brother and the chick from Starship Troopers) he concentrated, regretting it later but that’s to come. There was some hand wringing and excitement when we finally got to the meat of the story, meeting our protagonists all trapped in a house together. Lets deal with these sections of the film first...
Most of the traps Mr B found ridiculous, and it has to be said they dont hold up to logical analysis or scrutiny. I forgive a lot due to the fact the people here were clearly never meant to leave the first room but as Mr B pointed out with regards to a different matter its human nature not to sit around when you think you’re dying. That said he did visibly flinch twice, something I have NEVER seen him do as a hardened horror nut, due to his dislike of needles in one case, I forget the second.
It was during the more “police procedural” parts with Jigsaw and Detective Matthews that Mr B really expressed his distaste of what passed for a plot, completely disregarding the villains motivations and “logic”, its hard to disagree in part but I still find it cool at times in the series, and its not necessarily what they are about.
In conclusion not as good as I rememebered but still a worthy effort, some effective moments of emotional affectation, good plot beats and twists for me, and a few great traps and gore moments. My personal score...

*** (3/5)



MM