The Saw franchise is, without a doubt, the most successful horror franchise of the past decade. The first film is a modern day horror classic. I didn’t care much for the second and third films, but I really enjoyed the fourth. I skipped the fifth in theaters and have yet to see it. After watching the sixth installment, I know how the fifth one ended. Surprisingly enough, one would think with a sixth film that the series can only go downhill from here. However, I found the sixth installment of the franchise to be the best of all the sequels.
Special Agent Strahm is dead, and Detective Hoffman has emerged as the unchallenged successor to Jigsaw’s legacy. Now Detective Hoffman has to fulfill one last wish for Jigsaw: Target the health insurance company that denied him another chance at life. Hoffman and Jigsaw’s widow come together to fulfill Jigsaw’s final wish to punish William Easton, the head of claims of the insurance company. William wakes up and finds himself in a maze full of Jigsaw’s machines in which his employees are part of the game. He must choose who lives and who dies, just as he does everyday when he denies people their coverage. Now he will have to choose between the people he knows, and try to make it out alive. Meanwhile, Detective Hoffman is having troubles of his own, as detectives on the case with him are coming closer to uncovering the truth as to who is behind the new series of Jigsaw murders.
I really liked the first Saw film, but felt the second and third films just catered to fans of blood and gore which, in effect, turned the franchise into what would soon be dubbed torture porn. The fourth film was great in terms of story. I never saw the fifth because I never had urge to, and felt that Lion Gates was just beating the heck out of the franchise. Then came this film, Saw VI. At first I did say to myself, When will this franchise end? It can’t possibly be good anymore with the short turn around time between films. I was proven wrong, very wrong, for I really enjoyed Saw VI not for its blood, gore and torture contraptions, but for its very well-written story.
The script is solid, has great character development, and the story maintains continuity, yet gives in detail the back story of the previous installments of the series and the little things we might have missed between the stories. The dialogue is at sometimes nothing great, but overall, the thing that makes SAW VI a great film is its script.
Besides Tobin Bell’s brief appearances in flashbacks and as an apparition with co-star Shawnee Smith, the acting in the film is nothing great. There are flaws in some performances that I just could not quite put my finger on. Without Jigsaw’s involvement and Tobin Bell’s great performance, the film would have suffered dearly. That is not to say that all the performances are awful, however in some scenes, it is apparent that the actors really are not giving it their all, and that takes away some of the scares and thrills of the film.
The film has good production value just as all of the previous Saw films did. However, in terms of appearance, I did sometimes feel that I was watching a late night crime drama or sitcom. Some of the blocking and visual style make the law enforcement investigation scenes look as if they came right off the set of CSI.
The Blu-ray Disc features a lot of goodies for fans of the film. There is audio commentary with Producer Mark Burd and Executive Producers Peter Block and Jason Constantie as well as commentary with Director Kevin Greutert and writers Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton. The disc also has three featurettes; Jigsaw Revealed, which takes you behind the scenes with interviews with the cast and crew of the Saw films about Tobin Bell’s performance as Jigsaw in each of the Saw films. The Traps of Saw VI, which takes you on a tour of the contraptions used, and A Killer Maze – Making Saw: Game Over. The disc also has music videos and the Lions Gate Live feature, with which you can access exclusive content though your Blu-ray player online. The Unrated Directors cut edition of the Blu-ray also comes with a Blu-ray copy of the original Saw film as well.
I really enjoyed the story of Saw VI. I really did not think I was going to, but as the plot involves getting even with a heath insurance company and opens up a door to the politics of such corporations that decide who lives or dies, the writers and production team really tackle a timely political issue now with Heath Care Reform debate. The film is very left-leaning, but I’m glad that the franchise has included a social issue rather than making just another gore fest with no substance. The Saw franchise can only get better if future stories are as good as this one. There is room for improvement in the performances and certain aspects of the production values. Nonetheless, I highly recommend Saw VI. It is the best installment since the first film.
– Horror Bob
- Interview with J.R. Bookwalter - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Andrew J. Rausch - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Rick Popko and Dan West - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Director Stevan Mena (Malevolence) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Screenwriter Jeffery Reddick (Day of the Dead 2007) - January 22, 2015
- Teleconference interview with Mick Garris (Masters of Horror) - January 22, 2015
- A Day at the Morgue with Corri English (Unrest) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Writer/Director Nacho Cerda (The Abandoned, Aftermath) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actress Thora Birch (Dark Corners, The Hole, American Beauty) - January 22, 2015
- Interview with Actor Jason Behr, Plus Skinwalkers Press Coverage - January 22, 2015
