A new hope for the horror genre...

Rating: 7/10 (13 March 2005)

Despite a few obvious flaws and a couple of understandable logic-errors, James Wan's debut "Saw" definitely is one of the best horror projects of the last fifteen years. It finally is a film that dares to shock again! Most recent horror films politely request whether it's okay or not to scare you now, while "Saw"  much like cult hits from the 60's and 70's  just grab you by the throat and doesn't let go before the end credits start to role. That's what this genre is all about! It's not about how 100% waterproof the script is or how Oscar-worthy the acting is....we need shocks, bitterness and madness! Wan doesn't waste any time, as the story begins with two men waking up in a filthy old restroom, chained to the wall and separated by and corpse holding a gun. Still unaware of where they are and what they did to deserve this, Adam (a photographer) and Lawrence (an adulterous surgeon) are given the order to survive this situation by killing the other, using the attributes hidden somewhere in the room. It soon becomes clear that they were captured by the notorious "Jigsaw" killer...an extremely violent but intelligent serial murderer whose identity is still a mystery to the police and whose only motive and grudge seems to go out to people who're ungrateful to be alive. Wan and co-writer Whannel did their best to stuff the plot with so many twists and turns that you eventually stop to guess along in the killer's identity but the climax is overall satisfying and ingenious enough to be praiseworthy. The very best aspects, however, are the very imaginative "games" that the killer has thought up for his/her victims! These sequences (mostly shown through flashbacks) are utterly demented, grim and most certainly not meant for the eyes of the squeamish! I wanted more of them, actually...Truly disturbing also is the use of eerie scenery (masks, dark set pieces, torture machines) and sound effects. The gore is not overwhelming  thank God  but several sequences are quite repulsive and there even are a couple of authentic "jump" sequences. It's true that the acting, of nearly the entire cast, is abominable and at times even downright irritating. Maybe it's because all the washed up actors and actresses (there are quite a few "departed glory" stars here: Cary Elwes, Dany Glover, Monica Potter, Dina Meyer...) are just disappointed in their careers or maybe the young director Wan still lacks the talent to guide his cast into the right performances. I sure didn't allow the acting to ruin the rest of the film for me. When you watch horror a lot, you'll quickly learn that atrocious acting can't be too much of an obstacle. This is probably a film that will raise even more questions and unravel more mistakes when you watch it the second time around, but at least the first viewing is impressive and ensuring horror buffs that they're beloved genre is not yet dead and buried.