Saw VI

Rated: R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, and language.
Release Date: 2009-10-23
Starring: Marcus Dunstan, Patrick Melton
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:USA
Official Website: http://www.saw6film.com/

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In an extraordinary move the Spanish government have restricted “Saw VI” (not surprisingly the sixth installment in the Jigsaw horror series) to the nation’s eight theaters that are allowed to show porno.  While this begs the question, “Are Spaniards really into Pay Per View?”  Your critic says that it is an over-the-top judgment call.
 
Your critic entered the screening room expecting something akin to a snuff film that would arouse men who harbor violent thoughts against women.  Fortunately such was not the case.  However, pic contains moments that those with weak stomachs should avoid.
 
“Saw VI” meets or exceeds all standards on a technical level.  Sound recording works.  Lensing is competent.  Special effects don’t look expensive, but work.  Editing delivers just the right amount of tension.  Where it falls down is in storyline and acting.  There are three thesps who turn in creditable performances:  Tobin Bell, who created the role of Jigsaw John, Betsy Russell as his wife, addiction doc Jill, and Peter Outerbridge as William, a medical insurance executive who is pic’s evil capitalist.  The rest, notably Costas Mandylor as crooked detective Hoffman, either sleepwalk through their roles or need to go back to acting school.  In Mandylor’s case, those who remember him from TV’s “Picket Fences” will be disappointed to know that he has both gained weight and lost talent.  Dialogue is subpar.  Plot leaves a ton of loose ends.  Most of them have to do with the question, “Why?”
 
While dying of a cancer for which William’s insurance company refused to cover treatment (pic is at least timely) Jigsaw John has developed a very nasty post mortem revenge plot cloaked in pseudo human decency.  He sets up William, the insurance VP who refused coverage for an experimental procedure, in a catch 22.  He has to save himself by killing others.  Instead of building suspense, plot is an excuse to string together a series of bloody vignettes.  It’s a sort of “Galaxy Quest” on acid.  Such clues as exist are telegraphed.  Surprises surprise without any credible setup.
 
It is never explained why wife Jill goes along with the bloody scheme and why crooked detective Hoffman executes it.  It’s those pesky loose ends….
 
Direction on a technical level by Kevin Greutert is good.  Screenplay by Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton should have been sent back for rewrites.  But “Saw” is a franchise.  It functions on a different plane from the rest of cinema.  It has a track record at the box office and a loyal audience.  Lionsgate’s marketing strategy of not showing it to crix until opening day is open to debate, but pix such as “Saw VI” tend not be affected by notices.

Saw V

Rated: R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, language and brief nudity.
Release Date: 2008-10-24
Starring: Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:USA
Official Website: http://www.saw5.com/site/index.html

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SAW V is the worst film in the franchise’s history, yet it’s disturbing, gory, parody of itself maintains an appeal like no other in its ilk. Bad acting, a ‘horror’ of a script dialogue, all add to the mystique of why we as a collective mass of movie goers flock to films of this nature.

Jigsaw is dead and Detective Strahm is trying to get to the bottom of who is continuing his deranged games.

SAW movies are no longer frightening, they are just living off of their reputation from the first two. Director David Hackl reduces the bloodshed compared to it’s previous incarnations and in this fifth installment he delivers more of a character driven feature, leaving us more time to be engaged by the actor’s skills – why would you put us through such a thing!?

Nevertheless, the inventiveness of how to kill people is amped in this sequel; from homemade nail bombs to guillotine contraptions.

If you’re looking for a fright, save your money on SAW 5 and rent The Strangers on DVD. That has more of what you’re looking for. It was created to scare the skin off of you through a slow build of suspense that keeps you screaming to the very end.