Saw VI

Review By: Tom Herrmann
TomHerrmann@TheCinemaSource.com

Movie Grade: C-

“If it’s Halloween, it must be Saw,” is probably one of the greatest taglines for such a bad series of movies. The Saw franchise and I go way back to 2003 when I saw the very first film in theaters on Halloween. Since then, through better or worse, it has been an annual tradition of mine to subject myself to these films. After the first Saw film, which proved to be intriguing, gruesome, and shocking; and its adequate sequel, the franchise became more and more of a chore to watch. Still, there is something making other viewers and I flock to theaters to the new traps, twists, and ultimately terrible actors year after year.

Saw VI claims to be the final chapter of the franchise, something we should all be aware will not be true. After all, the fourth Friday the 13th film was titled “The Final Chapter,” and the thirteenth film of that series is due in theaters sometime in 2010. Nevertheless, this movie is an attempt to tie up all of the loose ends regarding parts one through five tighter than a Christmas gift wrapped by someone with OCD. It has all the basics as before, Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) has devised plans to torture people into appreciating life, even in his postmortem state. As far as specific plot goes, the flashbacks and cop-drama that has seemingly overtaken the last few films manages to steel a big chunk of this one. Aside from that, we watch William Easton (Peter Outerbridge) make his way through an elaborate trap where he has to pass several ultra-violent tests that could result in the deaths of others or his own.

Will’s portion of the plot takes an allegorical route by making him an insurance businessman. Not just any insurance businessman though, he is a high end, heartless tycoon who has developed a cruel system that judges the value of someone’s life. Most of his tests revolve around choosing what members of a small group should live or die: Jigsaw’s attempt to show him the flaws in his insensitive insurance tactics. Not to say that current issues aren’t acceptable to be expressed in film, but this one seems somewhat trite. Everyone from news outlets to Saturday Night Live are all over the health care reform at the moment, so having a poorly written film be metaphorical towards the issue just seems like an unnecessary addition. Especially when the symbolism practically jumps off the screen and steels your popcorn - what happened to subtle symbolism in horror? George A. Romero, get back to work!

The issues of pats four and five, being awkward cop-drama side story and voluminous flashbacks, are back in full swing. We dig deeper into Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor)’s involvement with Jigsaw as his protégé, as well as the investigation Hoffman is involved with to find said protégé. Without giving away too much: the investigation comes to a brutal, as well ...