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Movie Review: Saw III
'Saw III' a sequel to die for
By Brett Troxler
btroxler@wbrz.com
Web Producer
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PLAY OFFICIAL TRAILER
out of 4 stars.
A dying cancer patient, Jigsaw’s wish is for his victims to appreciate their life enough to fight for it, and to ultimately change the way they live in the future. Jigsaw is back for round three in “Saw III.”
Most of Jigsaw’s victims die. One that didn’t is Amanda, a character that played a pivotal role in Part Two and returns for her third appearance. A drug addict at the time she was targeted in Part One, Amanda (Shawnee Smith) is the only known survivor of Jigsaw’s games, and out of some sort of perverse respect she went on to become his apprentice of sorts. But you’ll find when Amanda is running the game, options are hard to come by. With Jigsaw bedridden, she is now charged with putting the puzzles together, complete with her own fatal modifications.
The third film picks up where the second left off, with the main game player from that film, Det. Eric Mason (Donnie Wahberg) facing the same dilemma Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) faced in the original. Pardon the pun, but you have to “Saw” it, to believe it.
Jigsaw is still in charge, and he has Amanda kidnap a doctor (Bahar Soomekh) to help keep him alive through the duration of what he claims to be his final game. This go-round involves a man whose son was killed at the hands of a drunk driver, a man who must face a series of tests designed in hopes of quelling his constant wish for vengeance. But is this the only game being played? Who is really being tested?
“Saw I” and “Saw II” are most assuredly required viewing before seeing the third installment. In fact, it’s probably best you refresh your memory by seeing them again in close proximity to your trip to the theater this Halloween. Flashback scenes fill in the gaps, providing answers to some – but not all – of the unanswered questions fans might have had up to this point.
I wrote the following when I reviewed “Saw II” a year ago, and with some fancy editing, the same words can be applied this time around: Part Three “really doesn’t sit still. Bouncing cameras and quick switches between angles add to the uneasiness you already feel. This sequel has more gore, grit and blood than the” first two films, and the set design, trap design, special effects and makeup is exceptional.
“Saw II” was certainly a good film. The directing and story were top notch, but the acting left a little to be desired. In the third film the acting is back to the level of the first, thanks mostly to the job done by Angus McFayden of “Braveheart” fame. Tobin Bell plays the same quiet, reserved role as Jigsaw, ever calm, cool and collected despite his demented mind and near-death circumstances. And thanks to the flashback scenes, moviegoers get a chance to see him at work at many different stages during his monstrous career.
Smith also gets a chance to play Amanda at different stages during her life, the latter being a sadistic, yet conflicted, woman whose taste for Jigsaw’s games has warped her mind. Soomekh, who plays the fourth key player in the film, does get a little annoying early on with her whimpering, but is adequate enough from that point forward.
“Saw III” is shot with the same dirty, sort of dingy quality we’ve seen before, and is chocked full of those hide-behind-your-hands moments the films have become famous for. The traps, in their own way, go above and beyond their predecessors. Some situations can’t be described as anything other than utterly disgusting. But for whatever reason the intense moments don’t exactly match the intensity we’ve seen and felt in the two films prior.
It’s no coincidence this film series is done at the hands of Twisted Pictures. "Saw" is a dish best serves with a side of pretzels. It’s easily the most intelligent franchise in the thriller/horror genre. Despite the gruesome nature and obvious preference to perversion within its three scripts, the web woven by the writing of James Wan and Leigh Whannell – “Saw III” director Darren Lynn Bousman also contributed some to the second film, which he also directed – always leaves your mouth agape when things are tied together in the end. “Saw III” is no exception. Far from it.
But is the trilogy complete, you ask? Has the wicked concept that is the “Saw” series taken its closing bow? I can’t say for certain. See the film and decide for yourself. There just might be another game to play after all.
CLICK HERE see Brett's "Saw II" review.
