A Lean, Mean Sequel

Rating: 7/10 (10 November 2005)

"Saw II" wisely follows the simplest of rules to avoid the typical trappings of horror sequels. It keeps things simple.
1. Take the originality of the concept in the first film and elaborate on it. The gruesome set-ups from the Jigsaw killer up the ante in every way from the first film. Here we get up not two people trapped in a nasty bathroom/basement and a single detective trying to crack the case, but a whole group or people trapped in a booby-trapped house and a whole swat team engaging in a face-off with the killer himself in a race against time.
2. If you had a twist ending in the first film, through people off guard with added gore and violence and more characters, so that when you pull off yet another twist ending, people will still be slightly shocked.
3. If what made the original so oddly endearing was a laughably bad lead performance (courtesy of Cary Elwes), play it straight and populate the film with the likes of ex-TV and pop-stars like Donnie Whalberg, Shawnee Smith, and that cute girl from 7th Heaven. Gone here is all the humor, and genre fans will feel redeemed from the bad acting of the first especially with all the bone-crunching, throat-slitting, head-exploding action on parade here.
In the end, the film is leaner and meaner than the first, and all the better for it. Considering the rushed nature of the production, the low budget, and the natural tendency for sequels to horror/slasher flicks to totally suck, this one is godsend.