SEE SAW!!!!!

Rating: Null/10 (19 September 2004)

When you get sooooo excited about a movie, it's hard to tell people how good it is. Words just can't describe how thrilling it was to find a movie like SAW and have it be such an amazing surprise. There have been so many "horror" movies lately that critics call the the scariest movie of the year, that end up being huge disappointments ("The Village"? "Open Water"? I rest my case) So I was setting myself up for the same disappointment when I saw SAW at the Toronto International Film Festival last night. And I have to say the film blew me away. It's what true horror should be: Gory, clever, surprising, and terrifying on a very primitive level. This is a film that rarely has pointless "jump" scares (you know, a loud music hit then a cat runs by) but achieves a fear that stays with you in a way that you could see someone walk down the street, and it's scary. My heart was thumping the whole time. The images are truly disturbing, and that's a good thing. It creates more fear. Director James Wan is probably the best thing to happen to horror in a long time. Some of the visuals he creates in this film will stay with you long after you leave the theatre. And writer/actor Leigh Wannell has created such a cool premise for a horror story that it's so refreshing to watch, because you've never seen it before. Whichever one of the two thought about using a camera flash to light up a room when the power goes out (you'll understand when you see the film), my hat goes off. That scene is one of the scariest I've seen because of the pure suspense and fear that they've created. If I had to point out something bad about the film (and there's not much bad about it) it would have to be the acting. Now, I'm not saying it's community theatre acting, because there are some amazing talents here, and throughout most of the movie they all shine, but as an actor myself, I pick up on some of the weaker moments. And there where some lines that were said that weren't totally believable. But that being said, horror isn't really an "acting" genre, so it's easy to look beyond. Anyway, in closing, this is one of the most original movies, not just horror movies, to come along in a while, and truly one of the scariest. You have to go see it whether you like horror or not because it is such a thrilling movie going experience. It deserves to be up there with "The Exorcist" as one of the scariest movies of all time. I cannot wait to see what Wan and Wannell do next. They definitely have a successful future ahead of them!! SEE SAW!!!!!!!