Saw 3 Review
Written by: alex1176
And thus we come to the end of a classic trilogy. "Saw III" does manage to be a horrifying experience, but as is the case with many second sequels, the creative inspiration isn't as apparent this time around. Let me state for the record that the original "Saw" is my favorite horror movie of all time. Exactly a year later after its opening day in the U.S., "Saw II" was released in American theaters and proved to be an extremely worthy follow-up. Despite a story by James Wan and script by Leigh Whannell, "Saw III" (while good) didn't really satisfy me as much as the previous two.
Director Darren Lynn Bousman, who helmed the second film, has made this last installment more gratuitous, but less suspenseful that the first two fright flicks. However, the shortcomings of the movie probably have more to do with the screenplay choices than the film's direction. MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!! My main disappointment with part 3 is the fact that there is no actual game that Jigsaw plays with his victims. There are a series of tests that he puts them through. Now, the story is a good one and I applaud Wan for going in a different direction from what had occurred before. I also love the flashbacks that flesh out the relationship Jigsaw has with his wannabe apprentice Amanda (it's a kick to watch them set up the trap from "Saw" 1). But what made the first two movies so engaging for me was how they both demanded your attention.
The first was a puzzle film in the vein of "Se7en" with an emphasis on creepy horror. Part II was a well made, all-out thriller that barely gave the viewer time to breathe. And they both concluded with ingenious twists that had my melon spinning. "Saw III" is more like a leisurely-paced morality tale and if it had been the first in the series, then I would've been blown away. However, with this being the third, a final twist was to be expected, so its impact wasn't as mind-blowing as it should've been. On the other hand, it was brilliant and perfectly ended the trilogy. The filmmakers actually brought a real closure to the story! They killed off both Jigsaw and Amanda!
Highlights in the film include the crazy Clive Barker-esque sequence in which a man tears off chains attached to his flesh before being blown to bits and a brain surgery scene which shames the brain-eating bit from "Hannibal". Unfortunately, there are some things that are never fully explained such as what just happened to Detective Matthews? Who was the woman in Jigsaw’s dream? What was in Amanda’s envelope? Why did Jigsaw pour melted wax on the tape recorder? Also, I couldn’t really sympathize with Jigsaw’s dying condition. In the end, if I could describe all three films with one word each, I would say that “Saw” is scary, “Saw II” is suspenseful and “Saw III” is horrifying. As I wrote in the beginning of my review, it’s a classic horror trilogy! And though I feel that this last one is the least of the three, it’s still worth watching and is a solid conclusion to the Jigsaw movies!