Slick thriller in the mould of Se7en that covers writing weaknesses with consistent tension & urgency

Rating: Null/10 (10 October 2004)

(This review contains no spoilers but it is better when you know very little about it and I would suggest not reading any reviews on the film but to just go and see it!)
Adam wakes up in a bath of water to find himself in a dark room, chained to a large pipe. On the other side of the room is one Dr Lawrence Gordon, who finds himself in the same position, in the middle of the room is a dead man with a gun and a Dictaphone in his hand. Two recorded messages reveal that Gordon's wife and daughter have been kidnapped and will be killed at 6pm that same day. The only way this will not happen is if Gordon kills Adam before this time, a feat that will involve getting out of his chains and to the gun.
The marketing campaign for this film had a very impacting poster with very little text and just the word 'SAW' on it. In a way, with no real bankable names in the cast to sell itself on, the film sold itself on the one thing that will always get audiences in  a concise and interesting central premise. Here it is very simple and very interesting and sets up a real tension from the outset that never really lets up until the very end. Let me just say now that tense is not the same as terrifying and viewers coming to this film looking for loads of gore and screaming horror will be let down; in fact I would class this film as a thriller more than I would a horror for this reason. The film opens with us right in this scenario of the chains etc and quickly we learn the ground rules and then learn more about the Jigsaw killer who is doing it. The flashbacks just take the edge off the main story a little bit but they do work well enough in themselves, and produce a more complex story.
In a way this is where the weaknesses come in because the hook of the simple premise is expanded out into a wider story  and not all of it hangs together with a great deal of logic. The motives of the killer are unsure and the way that everything does fit into place is unconvincing (to name two problems) but, while it is on, the film's tension covers these gaps and does a good job of holding you in its spell. This spell lasts no longer than the final credits as you begin to pick holes in the actual story, but by then you'll have been entertained and into the film too much to really let the plot holes bother you and it is only those hoping for a story to match the darkness of Se7en will be letdown, this is not of the same caliber as that film but it is still fun. The director has learnt from several other films and genres. He knows that the simple premise can be used as a great hook for a simple story (many short films do the same), he knows from Se7en that sometimes the horror we imagine is much worse than the one we can see, and he knows from recent Japanese horror movies that unsettling images are scarier than outright gore (hence the use of clown and pig heads). In terms of style the film is winning if a little overdone. Time skips forward with frantic camera movements, 'dank' is painted thick on every scene and generally the film delivers a mood of tension, urgency and unsettling action.
Not using the cast for the marketing was a good choice because there are no real a-list names here and, sadly, there are several botched jobs on the acting side. Whannell is good and does a solid job  even handling the script's 'comic relief' requirements without letting it take away from the dire nature of his situation. Elwes is OK but not as consistent. At times his delivery is flat and sounds like he is delivering some more serious lines in his 'Princess Bride' character, sounding insincere and wooden. It also didn't help that his make up for the majority of the film made him look like a tired old queen  I know it was supposed to be like white plastery stuff, but on Whannell it looked good but on Elwes it looked like it had been spread evenly! Glover is OK but given too little to do and his character changes too much too quickly before we have even known who he was.
Support from people like Leung and Martinez add familiar faces and generally the support cast do OK  but in keeping with the simple premise idea, the film is best when it keeps those involved to the minimum.
Overall this is an effective thriller. It will be compared to Se7en but it doesn't have the writing to really stand in the same crowd as that movie; the plot has too many holes and the twists often come from a desire to surprise and confound rather than coming as a natural part of the story (ie they don't have the common sense impact of Se7en's conclusion). However what it does do well is deliver a sense of tension and urgency focused on this 'simple' premise. This tension works so well that it pretty much covers the plot problems while you are watching the film, and you are swept along with it as you watch. After the film you'll pick away at it and it won't stand up to repeat viewings but it is still a great fun film while you're with it.