Saw: Frank's Take
01/01/2005 . Source: Frank Ochieng 

It’s routinely easy to conjure up sensationalized cinema that’s considered overwrought in its creepy conventions. But it’s certainly difficult to transcend that element of a frightfest and turn it into something that’s solidly bankable in its grisly greatness.

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First-time director James Wan wants to take his latest fright flick Saw to the outrageous limit but fails to instill anything substantive that will stimulate this gimmicky sleaze session. Wan feels that the wayward chilly atmospheric theatrics that is being demonstrated in Saw will automatically elevate this uneven serial killer saga as a haunting and hysterical masterful thriller. Well, unfortunately this over-the-top goofy-minded gore doesn’t cut the mustard.

Although inspired in trying to duplicate David Fincher’s raw 1995 hit Seven with a distinctive verve Wan struggles to bring this hallow hedonistic horror show to its full potential. Granted there are a series of blood-soaked brouhaha bits enhanced by jittery camera shot angles to capture the messy mode of Wan’s outlandish thrills. But to be bluntly gratuitous for the methodical sake of ushering out a heartless hair-raising piece of mundane entertainment without developing any original startling pulse is utterly baseless. Saw is violently voiced in its boisterous banality and maybe some will think that’s the key to its effectiveness in being yet another needlessly loud and lame “scream-on-top-of-your-lungs” hoot for the sadistic set. For what it is worth, Saw has all the refreshing raucous rush of French-kissing a rusty nail found in your neighbor’s dark attic.

One would think that this movie would have an ounce of cunning credibility given the capable cast that includes the charismatic Cary Elwes and the dependable Danny Glover. However, these two are a major letdown as they convey what may very well be some of the most unintentionally laughable performances of the year. A majority of callous-killing flicks featuring twisted lost souls will more often than not be bombarded with its share of unthinkable foolishness. However, Saw bangs its demented chest offering almost every recurring cliched scene imaginable in an otherwise exhausted genre. Saw doesn’t challenge the mind with its nonsensical pseudo-suspenseful surge but joyfully gets perverse kicks out of visually playing around with sordid images. From the recycled mindset of an instant classic such as The Silence of the Lambs to the gritty groove of the aforementioned Seven, Wan’s warped exposition doesn’t supply its own identity thus expounding upon the concept of being a common knock-off without any particular rhythm or reason.

The perilous premise behind Saw is established in a puzzling predicament. We’re introduced to Adam (Leigh Whannell, who also co-wrote the script) who’s mysteriously found in a water-filled bathtub while being chained from his ankles. He’s foggy about his squalid surroundings in the dangerously dark room. Soon, Adam discovers another individual sharing his doomed space in the form of Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes). Apparently Dr. Gordon is in the same dilemma as Adam—he too is trapped by the very same circumstances.

Both men eventually stumble across a dead body lying in the middle of the floor. With his brains splattered all over the place, Adam and Dr. Gordon also notice a tape player with audio tapes instructing the weary captives what their assigned roles are in these dubious headgames being enforced by their unknown abductor. The purpose behind using these two tied up men while saddling them with an accompanying corpse is to psychologically create some juicy friction for the deadly puppetmaster to pull his seedy strings while enjoying his tortuous treatment.

According to the taped message, Dr. Gordon must kill Adam at a certain time. If he disobeys and refuses to eradicate Adam then he will pay the ultimate price and have his loved ones (Monica Potter as the wife; Makenzie Vega as the daughter) perish instead. The terrified tandem are restricted in their movement so there’s really no freedom for them to retaliate against their sick-minded aggressor. Plus, the guys—in the position of sitting guinea pigs—have to rely on each other despite the reservations and suspicions that have been suggested courtesy of the distrust built up by the menacing madman that put them in this current deadly jam.

With curiosity floating in the ominous air, Gordon starts to piece together his theory on who is the mastermind behind their torment. He tells Adam, through a staple of eerie flashbacks, about the notorious cretin known as the Jigsaw Killer. Evidently, this crazed character derives his gratifying perks from placing his victims in dire situations and watching how desperate they become in order to show how much they really appreciate their zest for life. The Jigsaw Killer will set up a scenario where his targets must react to adverse stimuli and chose to follow whatever their fate will allow them.

One of the determined sources out to curb the gruesome goings-on of The Jigsaw Killer is Detective David Tapp (Danny Glover). He has the dirty deed of following up on The Jigsaw’s disgusting ritual of disposing bodies habitually with crafty consistency. Tapp is relentless in trying to nab the cocky killer and has to deal with a great amount of angst in trailing his fiendish suspect.

In retrospect, Saw follows the traditional path of throwing in the obligatory twists and turns that hope to steer disoriented audiences in different directions. As shocking and tension-filled as Wan’s goosebump jubilee purports to be in content, the inane trappings of Saw are glaringly ludicrous at best. The situational standoff is actually a clever foundation to build on in the way the movie presents the filthy claustrophobic vibes and the perplexed participants that must deal with the manufactured madness. And the nervy intention of using The Jigsaw Killer’s saws as a symbolic tool of freedom (all the protagonists have to do is hack off their feet to escape their endangerment) is somewhat deemed as cynical, grimy fun. But Wan doesn’t take the opportunity to let the inherent mental madcap of his staged blood-stained opera work the morbid magic for him. Instead, the filmmaker relies too much on the vulgar ventilation of his harried flick. It would have been advisable to shrewdly focus upon the intermittent subtle aspect of his laborious skin-crawling storytelling.

As mentioned earlier, the stilted and woefully hammed-up performances are inexplicably hideous. Elwes is dreadfully awkward and unconvincing as the terrorized trump card being shuffled by the resident villain. It’s clear that Elwes cannot decide as to how to play his Dr. Gordon—whether with a camp-oriented flavor or an element of straightness. Either way, Elwes comes off as a silly-minded sap screeching whenever the moment calls for such scenic chewing. And Glover’s supporting turn as a disillusioned detective is the biggest lackluster on-screen work he’s done since partaking in the anemic sequel Predator 2 some years ago. The radiant Potter has the thankless task of simply taking up useless screen space and not contributing anything substantial that would garner any sympathy for her convenient guise as Jigsaw’s beleaguered bait.

Sadly, this Saw doesn’t quite cut through the tumultuous malarkey. As for the maniacal Jigsaw one almost feels sorry for his high-caliber quirky killing spree that’s being wasted as hampered overkill.

Frank Ochieng

(c) Frank Ochieng 2005