Jigsaw

(spoiler free)

Despite ‘Saw VII’ being deemed ‘The Final Chapter’ of the franchise seven years later here we are again with a reboot to the hugely successful horror series. Back to reclaim Halloween ‘Jigsaw’ sees a new string of murders that seem to resemble the methods of John Kramer even though he’s been dead for over ten years. Is Kramer back from the grave or is a copycat killer responsible?

The narrative doesn’t stray too far from what we expect from this series. A group of strangers awaken to find themselves part of a twisted game involving several life threatening traps. We’ve seen it countless times before but at least this time around there is the added mystery of who the mastermind behind these new games is. It works as your bog standard whodunit even if it’s slightly predictable. It’s this element that saves it from being nothing more than torture porn. The cast is made up of relative unknowns and the performances suffer somewhat as a result. Not a franchise to inspire any award winning turns but audiences should still be given believable performances, regardless the cast’s work here is serviceable. Some fare better than others, however the nature of these films make it hard for performers to make their characters likeable considering the often unthinkable sins they’ve committed. It’s a continuous debate audiences will have to enter into, do you want to see this person escape or do they deserve their fate?

The horror element is never particularly strong in ‘Jigsaw’. There’s nothing to be scared of here but these films were always more about gore than genuine scares right? This is somewhat hard to assess. Should the film be over the top with it’s gore and shock it’s audience or should it go for more realistic practical effects? All I know is I was more horrified watching that one scene in ‘Gerald’s Game’ than I was in the entirety of this film. In terms of the traps they are a mixed bag. It’s stated in the film that the simplest games are the best ones so it’s a shame that so many of the traps are over ambitious, taking away much of the suspense and horror. There are of course a couple of exceptions to the rule and these moments showcase the ‘Saw’ franchise when it’s at it’s best.

Ultimately this is a middle of the road entry into the inescapable ‘Saw’ series. Fans of these films should enjoy this trip down memory lane as it feels very similar to the countless sequels that the original film spawned. The whodunit aspect of the narrative is crucial in engaging audiences as loyal viewers will most likely already be desensitized to the customary blood and guts. It’s Halloween release will see it do well but there’s much better our there for audiences this October.

Written by Hamish Calvert

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Rating – 5/10

Question: What is your favourite horror sequel?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)

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