Saw II Movie Review:


WARNING: The following review contains spoilers about the original Saw. Although most reviews of Saw II will probably include similar information, I wanted to point this out to readers who may not have seen the first movie.

What's great about horror flicks like Saw is that while they're not true originals, they take what's been done before and transform the elements into a refreshing package. Saw wasn't just another serial killer movie; it had a brain, an intelligence combining a diabolical mindset with some good ol' blood 'n' gore to form a film that didn't just play with your mind, it bounced it off the floor and had you asking for more. But the trouble with crafting a genre effort that breaks the mold is the inevitable downside that follows: doing it again.

Following up Saw is akin to making a sequel to The Sixth Sense; the endings of both films left viewers breathless and wowed. The thought of either one becoming a series with the original shock value intact seems like the dumbest idea in the world. The makers of Saw II must've seen this cynicism coming, since this follow-up is every bit as gruesome and inventive as its predecessor. In fact, it improves upon the original in an area or two as well. Most sequels rushed into producion in order to tap into a potential franchise come out thin and unengaging, but Saw II has lots of meat on its demented little bones.

Saw II continues the story of Jigsaw (Tobin Bell), a sort-of serial killer who places people he believes don't value their lives enough into situations where they have to push themselves a little harder than usual in order to retain the privilege of being alive -- mostly, though, they die gruesomely, thanks to Jigsaw's "Rube Goldberg on acid"-style booby traps. After the police come upon Jigsaw's latest victim, it's Detective Eric Mathews (Donnie Wahlberg) who uncovers the location of the madman's lair and leads the charge to bring him to justice. There's just one problem: Jigsaw already set his newest, sickest plans into motion, involving eight people trapped in a house...one of whom is Eric's son (Erik Knudsen).

While the detective and Jigsaw play mind games with one another, those stuck in the house, including former Jigsaw victim Amanda (Shawnee Smith) and hothead Xavier (Franky G), search frantically for a way out, before the nerve gas flowing through the vents turns their bodies to mush in a matter of hours. As Jigsaw himself says, "Oh, yes...There will be blood..."

After a year with only a few great horror films released (three Hide and Seek's for every Land of the Dead), I'm pleased to see Saw II avoiding the bad end of the spectrum. It fuels itself with the same grisly atmosphere and creative energy that made the original film such a modern-day classic. Both films rise above the normal slasher restrictions, not simply killing off characters for the sake of giving the guy who mixes up the fake blood something to do. These films explore Jigsaw's motives and show how the victims' personalities come into play and the fiendishly clever ways they bring about their own ends, rendering Jigsaw blameless for the crimes (though, admittedly, that's a veeeeeeery thin technicality). Saw II simply continues the work of its predecessor, taking the story and its various elements to a slightly higher level while possessing the same smarts, thrills, and diabolical intelligence that made it all work in the first place.

Saw II features more polished acting than the original (still, with such a tight shooting schedule, one can't blame Saw's performances for ringing a little flat). All the characters serve a single function for the entire movie, but they each manage to keep the audience involved in their own personal storylines. Wahlberg is your basic Grizzled Movie Cop (swearing with every breath, five o'clock shadow, etc.), and Bell is the meek but wily villain. Together, these two develop their own intriguing criminal/cop relationship, one reminiscent of Clarisse and Hannibal in Silence of the Lambs.

Less successful are the eight screaming victims who whine about how much they want to get out to one degree or another (although the filmmakers did a good job of working back in Smith's character from the first film). Luckily, scenes featuring the deadly traps -- ranging from a "death mask" lined with nails to something like a "needle pit" -- generate just as much interest and are equally as tense as those in Saw. First-time director Darren Lynn Bousman not only keeps this inventive streak flowing while weaving a story around it that's consistently suspenseful but also ends the film with an inevitable plot twist that maintains the Saw jaw-dropping tradition.

Saw II works brilliantly, both as a sequel and a stand-alone creepfest.



Adam Hakari

As the Jigsaw killer (Bell) continues leaving a trail of victims in his wake, Det. Eric Mason (Wahlberg) is pulled into the case when he takes a personal interest in the police officer. When he unravels the mystery about his latest victim, Mason comes face to face with Jigsaw himself but this is just the start to another game.

After the mammoth success of the low budget horror hit ‘Saw’ a sequel was inevitable but can his follow up start a whole new game?

As Hollywood became obsessed with remakes of old horror hits and Asian fright fests, a low budget film was released in 2004 that injected in life into the fading genre. That film was ‘Saw’. Here we had an intelligent serial killer movie, with more twists and turns that you could ever imagined and a killer that never actually murdered his victims. It was this unique twist, combined with some ingenious methods of dealing out his own kind of justice, which captivated and terrified audiences and now the sequel has to keep up that moment.

The problem with any sequel or continuation of a story is that you always have the original to live up to and not many of them surpass the impact of the first film and the bad news is that ‘Saw II’ doesn’t quite have the same shock value. This doesn’t make this a bad film however but you do know what to expect. As the first film had twist and turns and a shock ending, you are expecting them throughout the film and this takes away some of the impact of the horror that the deaths of Jigsaw’s new victims has. They are however, no less inventive as you watch and try and figure out the reason behind Jigsaw’s latest nefarious plan.

As with the first movie, the film doesn’t have any stars to take anything away from the story or Jigsaw’s games. Donnie Wahlberg, who is more known for his music and TV appearances, has a chance to show what he can do on the big screen and he does his best with the character of Det. Eric Mason. The latest police officer to go up against Jigsaw, Wahlberg brings some believability to the film and makes the character his won. Dina Meyer returns as Kerry, the investigating officer from the first film whom you are waiting for Jigsaw to take an interest in. Shawnee Smith also returns as the survivor Amanda, who is dragged back into the nightmare after not learning her lesson from the first film. The star of the show is Tobin Bell however, as John. He is an actor who you always recognise but never know who his name is but this is his chance to shine.

While ‘Saw II’ doesn’t have the same impact as the first film this is still far superior to any other horror movies that Hollywood is producing at the moment. With its twist and turns, gore and a killer that is increasingly inventive and compulsively watchable, as most great serial killers have to be, ‘Saw II’ provides enough scares to keep you on the edge of your seat and cowering with fright.

Jamie Kelwick

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