I Want To Play A Game!

Rating: 9/10 (20 August 2014)

Every decade, the horror genre becomes re-defined. In the 50s, it was Universal with their giant bugs. In the 60s, it was Alfred Hitchcock with PSYCHO and then George Romero with NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. The 70s saw a dramatic spike in wild and woolly films, like THE Texas CHAINSAW MASSACRE, THE HILLS HAVE EYES, HALLOWEEN, and countless others. The 80s had their run of "dead-teen" flicks. Followed closely in the 90s by the "copycat killers", like SCREAM and I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER. Right before the start of the millennium, along came THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT. While I personally didn't find it as scary as they made it out to be, it certainly paved the way for a sub-genre of "shaky-cam horror", like PARANORMAL ACTIVITIES and REC. Finally, in the mix, came what could best be described as "puzzle bloodbaths". And that's when SAW came into being. In the world of film, the simplest way to make a movie is take a camera, two actors, and put them in a room for 90 minutes or so. And that's pretty much what SAW is.
The story: Adam, a photographer, and Lawrence, a doctor, wake up in a dark room chained at opposite ends. Through a series of harrowing flashbacks, they try to piece together how they ended up trapped. It turns out there's a devious killer on the loose, nicknamed "Jigsaw". See, he likes to put people into elaborate traps and then the victims have to do increasingly-horrendous things to be set free. The occasional deviation outside of the room, focusing on other characters, is a little distracting and unnecessary. Because both actors inside the room give such authentic and believable performances. I particularly liked Cary Elwes. Apart from that, fellow blood fiends will not be disappointed in the special effects department. Let me just say that SAW lives up to its name. But please, gentle maniacal viewer, don't bother with any of the sequels. They're just blood messes without any of the finesse of the original!