"Saw" Review

"Saw" Review
Originally uploaded by duckydale.

Way back in the middle of the summer I reported to you how fucked up this trailer was and how much I couldnt wait to see it. Well, that day has finally come and I will hold true in saying this thing is fucked up. Now, don't get me wrong, there are some major problems with this film (some acting and some plot lines and some cringe worthy dialogue) but in theory and execution, "Saw" is fucking maniacal.

Cary Elwes, you killed my father, prepare to die. Oh, wrong film. Cary Elwes can't act. Period. But, he works in this film as one of the tortured victims of "The Jigsaw Killer."

Danny Glover, without Mel Gibson you might as well be cardboard. The performance pulled through by this so called veteran of acting is pathetic and pointless. His whole storyline (and any story outside of what is happening in that room with two men chained to pipes with nothing but a hacksaw, a cigarette, a cellphone, a bullet and a dead body) - is pointless.

I know this is an indie film. I know it's an amazing film for a limited budget and that it was a festival darling. It deserves that praise. But, where "Saw" goes wrong is in forcing reasoning into a reasonless scenario. Without a backstory into Cary Elwes character and that horrible police investigation, "Saw" could have been one of the true original and maddening horror films of all time.

It could have pulled off terror and senseless violence in the tradition of the original "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" but they were afraid to go there in my opinion. I think worrying about marketability corrupted the genius this film really is. Torture and terror for the purpose of hurting or killing. Plain and simple. Instead it tries to invoke some morality into the sitatuation, ruining the mind numbing and cring-worthiness of the film.

My favorite and most terrifying parts are as follows:

- Shawnee Smith's character recants her experience and eventual escape from the killer. It had me shaking in my seat. It is pure evil shown on film. Fucking genius sequence.

- Cary Elwes takes drastic measures to free himself from the chains. This is the point of the film. This is the redemption of torture and sadism. This is what I came to the film for and what I worried the film was never going to become. But it did!

- The ending two minutes. Pure and simply a masterpiece of horror cinema.

All in all, this is worth it's weight in Sundance gold. Menacing (in terror and Danny Glover's performance).

Rating: *** (out of 5)