Mmmmm... juicy!

Rating: 8/10 (28 March 2005)

In the spirit of movies like "Seven", "Saw" is a juicy mix of graphic horror and psychological trickery. This is not a horror movie at all. There are no boogie men or spooky ghosts in this one. The bad guy this time around is just a man, though he seems to lack any real humanity. Dubbed the Jiggsaw killer, this evil antagonist kidnaps people and forces them into nightmarish situations, which is where we find our two main characters Adam (Leigh Whannel) and Lawrence (Cary Elwes) at the start of the film, both chained to the walls of a disease soaked bathroom. With only a pair of saws and instructions from their captor to make a decision of whether or not to kill the other to gain freedom, the story of how the two men are connected unfolds in a series of flashbacks. Mixed in with them are also scenes that show the aftermath of the Jigsaw killer's other crimes. Danny Glover makes an appearance as the detective assigned to investigate these strange events as well, though his role is second to most of the other characters. What struck me the most as I came out of this movie was how well the director used different styles of fear throughout the film. There were a few jump scares, but they weren't over-used by any means. The concepts that the killer comes up with to torture his victims were some of the most grizzly and well thought out ideas I've seen in a serial killer film. The movie isn't nearly as gore-filled as the previews may lead one to believe either, which I felt was another nice touch. My only beef with this movie would have to be with some of the actor's performances. I realize that acting scared can be tricky sometimes, but when you make a career out of it, I honestly think you should be a bit more convincing than some of the actors were in this movie. The soundtrack has mistakenly been said to be a nice mix of heavy metal and grunge music, featuring bands like Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails and Fear Factory. While these are hardly what I would consider "heavy metal" bands, (Fear Factory excluded), the music that is used does fit well in the movie's context. BOTTOM LINE: One of the best balances of jump fear, juicy splatter-punk and disturbing suspense I have seen in a while. An underdog of a scary movie in a time with very little hope left for the genre.