Lacks the ingenuity of the first, but still entertaining

Rating: 6/10 (1 November 2005)

For those who "saw" and liked the first SAW, you will no doubt be entertained by the sequel. "The Jigsaw Killer" is back, with more dastardly, sadistic traps for his slacker victims.
This time, John is caught by the police right at the beginning of the movie. As usual, however, John has anticipated his capture and reveals video screens that depict his latest victims (one of whom is the son of one of the lead police detectives), trapped in a house filled with his deadly devices. John poses a simple test to the police detective: sit here and talk to me and I'll return your son, safe and sound. The problem for the detective is how to do that when the video screens vividly portray the suffering and death of John's latest victims.
SAW II lacks the shock value of the original because the gimmick is familiar to fans of the first movie. There are more victims in this movie, but unfortunately, the number of victims dilutes the suspense because we the audience do not get the opportunity to learn as much about them as we did the victims in the original. The victims in this film are little more than cannon fodder for John and, as such, we care very little for their ultimate fate. Worse still, the deaths of some of the victims (particularly Beverly Mitchell of "Seventh Heaven" fame) are, it pains me to say, boring, especially given what we've come to anticipate from the more ingenious death traps shown in the first movie.
Once again, even the "heroes" of the film aren't people one especially wants to root for, but again, the leads are so thinly drawn that the horror of their ultimate fate eludes us. It's one thing when the innocent are tortured, but when the guilty are punished, however horribly, it's hard to get too worked up about it.
The "twist" ending wasn't much of a twist, especially compared to the first movie and smacks of deriving too much from many a bad slasher sequel. The police detective's son's final fate was a bit less predictable, but ultimately unsatisfying, given that his father's fate seemed to violate the rules of the "Game."
In any event, the first movie was a far superior film, but this one still had enough shocks and thrills to make it worth a trip to the theater. For fans of the original, however, it will be somewhat of a letdown.