We’re officially done with Hostel movies, so it’s all Saw from here on out for Saw-mhain! Saw 3D was billed as “The Final Chapter,” and that was a laugh. I mean, Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter is the fourth movie out of tenish, so it’s no surprise that another Saw entry was made. Granted there’s a 7 year gap between the movies, but still. Was a pause all it took to make these movies good again? I mean, not really, but improvements have been made!
Jigsaw–we’ve ditched the numbering system until very, very recently–is a story split in two. The first is a couple of cops working with a pair of medical examiners in investigating the supposed resurgence of John Kramer, 10 years after his death. The other is the main trap, which very clearly is not happening at the same time. Like, the movie doesn’t even try to make us believe events are happening concurrently, but the extent of how far they’re off is saved for the twist. Anyway, Detective Halloran (Mr. Callum Keith Rennie, AKA Cylon Number Two) doesn’t follow the rules, something that gets snidely brought up a few times. His detective partner doesn’t matter (sorry, Clé Bennett), but the ME’s are Logan (Matt Passmore) and Eleanor (Hannah Emily Anderson). Logan’s a vet who got fucked up by the Taliban, and Eleanor has an unhealthy obsession with Jigsaw. But when dead bodies start appearing, clearly indicating a new game is taking place, suspicion spreads between the investigators. Meanwhile, a group of five–wait, sorry, one guy fails super early and now it’s down to four–wake up in a barn and go through a series of games, challenging them on their lies. Everyone has blood on their hands one way or another, but the final two are Anna who definitely didn’t suffocate her baby and blame it on her husband, and Ryan who caused a confirmed pair of accidental deaths and possibly more. At the end we find out their test is being orchestrated by… John Kramer? Wait, what? I know the movie is trying to make us think he somehow faked his death, but that’s not someone wearing a very, very detailed mask. Okay, so there’s like a ten year gap between the games and the investigation? Oh, yeah, time for the twist.
The killer in the present day is… Logan! Emily being a freak and Halloran being an asshole were red herrings, and Logan had a grudge against Halloran because the cop went easy on an informant who–allegedly–killed Logan’s wife. And if the film stopped there I’d give it higher marks. But no, it turns out Logan was the fifth person in the games ten years ago, who Kramer saved from death because the blood on his hands was accidental–he switched some x-rays by mistake, leading to Jigsaw’s cancer not being found when it was more treatable. The bodies showing up in the present are people he abducted to make the audience think the two time periods are happening at the same time, but again, it doesn’t work very well. And because these movies just have to go a little too far, it turns out Logan was actually really no seriously Jigsaw’s first apprentice, helping him create the reverse bear trap used on Amanda. Oh joy, another secret apprentice. Meanwhile, ten years ago, Anna tries to kill Ryan but accidentally kills herself, which leads to Ryan’s death since she ruined his chance to escape.
I don’t hate this movie, but I do kind of hate the reveal that Logan had personally worked with John Kramer. I also feel like the game had a bit of a missed opportunity as it was implied that this was actually Jigsaw’s first organized, multi-person trap–assuming Cecil’s test in Saw IV was the actual first since that fits narratively. Anna was John’s neighbor, while one of the victims sold a motorcycle with faulty brakes to Kramer’s nephew. And then there’s Logan with the switched x-rays. Okay, so we definitively have three contestants–feels weird to call them that, but let’s go with it–that are associated with Jigsaw, but the other two… are just there. Their manslaughters seemingly have nothing to do with Kramer, and it just feels a little weird. Like, go all in one way or another. Otherwise the film is just fine. It’s fine. It’s okay, but at least a step up from Saw 3D.
Previous: Saw 3D (2010)
Next: Spiral: From the Book of Saw (2021)
Follow Me Elsewhere
Chwineka Watches 
Leave a comment