a letdown in every sense of the word

Rating: 5/10 (22 March 2005)

I've always enjoyed movies about serial killers and have been especially interested in the ones where the killers were original. Saw offers an enticing premise - and fails miserably in its delivery.
My main problem is just that this movie's situations start off as interesting then quickly degenerate into a mash of events that really aren't all that entertaining and finally end with nothing to feel satisfied about. I don't exactly have a problem with the film's "twist ending" so much as how it was executed. The other thing that really bugged me is that so much of the stuff had this really tacked-on feel that made me wonder why the hell I should care about any of it. The best example of this is Danny Glover's character, the obsessed cop who's actions make little sense and ultimately wind up meaning very little.
The coincidences this movie tries to pull off are boring which is even more terrible when you take under consideration just how bad the characters are. The main two guys in the room can be described as follows: the over-dramatic, annoying guy and the whiny annoying guy. The killer might have been an interesting character but he's never really analyzed. The movie's aim is to keep him shrouded in mystery - unfortunately, the mystery continues after the movie is over. It leaves one thinking - wow, that killer sure was sadistic and clever - I wonder who the hell he was?
The twist that the movie's main scenario was just one part of a bigger game is actually sort of cool. It's really too bad the audience has to suffer through a bunch of bland dialogue and predictable scenes to get there.
Saw really did have some things going for it. But the fact is that none of that stuff can really save it in the end, what with all the nauseating crap that surrounds it all. I didn't really think I'd like it once I'd seen it but I had assumed I'd decide that it would have been at least worth seeing. Oh well, can't be right all the time. Avoid.