Movie Review: Saw

Saw

I heard some positive things about Saw when it was released and had planned to see it. Unfortunately, other movies and my personal schedule got in the way and I missed it in theatrical release. I've frankly regretted it ever since. When I heard that Saw II was coming out at the end of October, I determined that I had to see the much talked about first film once and for all. So I borrowed the DVD from a friend, and one night last week sat down watch what was said to be an extraordinarily grisly and suspenseful film. I wasn't disappointed on either count.

In Saw, two entirely unrelated men wake up to find themselves shackled in the filthy bathroom of some abandoned industrial facility or another. A dead man in the middle of the room is telling no tales; neither of the two living men have any idea where they are, but one of them has some idea of why it is that they're there. Adam (Leigh Whannell) is confused and terrified; Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) is scared, but has some notion of who it might be that's holding the pair captive.

Gordon believes they've been taken hostage by a man known as "Jigsaw." Jigsaw has been terrorizing the area for some months by kidnapping people and then setting them to solve deadly puzzles. Although Jigsaw claims that there's always some way out of their predicament — and there is — people typically don't survive Jigsaw's little "tests."

The police, of course, are hot on the trail of the so-called Jigsaw. Detective David Trapp (Danny Glover) and his partner Detective Steven Sing (Ken Leung) have investigated several suspects and believe they're finally closing in on the villain. But Jigsaw has, in a manner of speaking, set a puzzle for the police, too. So as law enforcement works to solve the case, Adam and Dr. Gordon are rushing to solve a puzzle of their own before one or both of them joins Jigsaw's other victims in death.

Though matters are terrible and terrifying enough on the surface, even beyond Jigsaw's ability to misdirect and confuse may be his talent for planting obsession or fear in the minds of those who are only victimized in a peripheral — but no less horrific — way. Jigsaw, meanwhile, believes he remains on the moral high ground by rendering judgment, punishment, and the opportunity for redemption for those people he's found lacking. His belief in his own superiority drives his every action, while his victims often discover that they're less than perfect just in time to die.

Saw was created by James Wan and Leigh Whannell; it was directed by the former and scripted by the latter. Both are young (in their late 20's); Saw was Whannell's first screenplay, and Wan's second film. With a budget of just $1.2 million and a shooting schedule rushed over a short 18 days, the film was first shown at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival and then released to theatres late that same year. Buoyed largely by word of mouth, Saw grossed more than $55 million in domestic receipts alone.

In some ways, Saw is reminiscent of the brilliant Memento (which was also shot on a gruelingly short budget and timeframe). It's gritty; it makes good use of flashbacks; and it has enough twists and turns to keep viewers guessing until the final moments. If it falls short anywhere, it's in those portions of the script that are less than natural and in some edits that could have been been more effective. The story idea, though, is top notch, and the script is frankly good enough to redeem its few lesser moments.

I often have a difficult time picturing Cary Elwes as anything other than his handsome and heroic Westley from The Princess Bride (he did, I'm afraid, create quite an impression on me in that movie at the time). In Saw, however, he's so immersed and believable in the character of Dr. Gordon that I'll never make the mistake again of thinking him best suited to be a light-hearted hero. Leigh Whannell is wonderful as the young and obviously terrified Adam; Danny Glover and Ken Leung are also good. In fact, the entire cast is, at the very least, just fine in their roles. But it's still the story here that's the star, and for real horror fans, a bright and shining star it is.

FAMILY SUITABILITY: Saw is rated R for "strong grisly violence and language," and it is, indeed, grisly (and that's the toned down version — the original garnered an NC-17 rating until further edits were made; the stronger version is not yet available, but could show up as the "director's cut" DVD in the future if Wan gets his way). It is not remotely suited either for children under the age of about 16 or for sensitive adults. There's blood and gore aplenty, and more than a few moments of almost unbearable suspense. If you can handle the former and enjoy the latter, Saw is worth seeing. In fact, it's easily the best true horror movie I've seen since The Ring. I can only hope that the upcoming sequel doesn't disappoint as did the mediocre Ring 2...