As a horror movie fan, I love a franchise, for better or worse. When a story, a world and an entire mythos grows, it makes room for more complexities and explorations of the human mind (and body, depending on the level of gore…!), often leading to inner revelations and, hopefully, a satisfactory end. Saw is one of those franchises that has had its ups and downs when it comes to being received by audiences and critics, yet somehow it has endured for twenty-one years (and counting). I have seen Saw I-VII before and I remember most of the surprises and gory traps set by Jigsaw, but much of the story has left my mind – all I really remember is thinking how repetitive it got. To that end, join me as I delve back in from the beginning and seeing if I remember correctly or if I was… gravely… wrong.

Saw (2004)
Director: James Wan
4/5

Throwing us in the deep end from the off, Adam (Leigh Whannell), a photographer, and Lawrence (Cary Elwes), a doctor, wake up chained and trapped in what appears to be a dilapidated bathroom, with no one but each other and a corpse for company. They have to find a way out of their predicament or face off against each other. I would love to have received the treatment for this film, as the premise sounds utterly fantastic. Fortunately, it is just as much so in its final iteration. Saw indugles everything we love about body horror and intrinsic fear while giving us a puzzle to solve, that being who put Adam and Lawrence in the bathroom, as well as who is ensaring people and forcing them to hurt themselves in order to be free (or, more likely, kill themselves in the process). It does get a little weak during the second act, in which the story starts to stretch itself beyond what is necessary for the plot to move forward, but it soon finds its feet(!) again by the end. A really good introduction to what will be quite the gory, puzzling series.

Saw II (2005)
Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
3/5

Things take quite a heightened turn in this sequel, in which the Jigsaw killer, aka John Kramer (Tobin Bell), has trapped a group of people in a house, including the son of Detective Eric Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg), and they have to find a way to work together in order to escape. This installment perhaps overdoes it in the character department, with an overabundance of stories to follow alongside the main storyline that involves Detective Matthews. It comes across as a vehicle for more inventive ‘traps’ and ‘games’, which, while we do watch these films mainly for that sadistic creativity, gets a little mind-numbing after a while, and less shocking. Saw II succeeds more in the area of its twists and plot surprises, which is actually a little more satisfying that watching someone bleed or burn to death, than it does in overall story.

Saw III (2006)
Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
3.5/5

This entry into the series has perhaps some of the better twists. Now we see Jigsaw/Kramer on his last legs as cancer begins to really ravage his body, but it doesn’t stop him from playing more ‘games’ and inviting people to ‘save themselves’. They myst reckon with the parts of themselves that are stopping them from living and being ‘grateful’ for it, as well as forgiving those who’ve harmed them. The themes are beginning to deepen in the series, making for more interesting individual stories, and the recurring characters are getting fleshed out, all alongside the gory horror of Jigsaw’s ‘games’. Although the pacing of Saw III is a little up and down, the culminating twists make it quite worthwhile, and the strange juxtoposition of understanding Kramer’s intentions while being repulsed at his methods and belief that he has the right to teach these ‘lessons’ might leave you questioning the control you have over your own way of thinking.

Saw IV (2007)
Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
3/5

Following directly on from Saw III, this fourth installment has a slighty confusing timeline as it flits in between Kramer’s history, how he becamse Jigsaw, recent events and present situations. As Jigsaw continues his ‘games’ with the help of others, he tests Officer Daniel Rigg (Lyriq Bent) by sending him to others whom Jigsaw has trapped and inviting Rigg to help them… or not. At this point it might be getting more difficult to come up with new and inventive ways to ‘play’ with Kramer’s ‘subjects’. They are continuing to do well in the shock department, however the twists aren’t quite as surprising as they have been previously. I did enjoy getting to know John Kramer more and very much enjoyed Tobin Bell getting his teeth into the character more. I’ve also come to realise how animalistic people can be and how we are, at the end of the day, still creatures of a vicious nature who often play deadly games with each other in spite of the consequences.

Saw V (2008)
Director: David Hackl
3.5/5

Kinda like a Hunger Games for adults, Saw V sees more group-based death puzzles, except this time they are more interesting and easier to follow, particularly as we have the addition of cop-on-cop suspicion as more people start to go missing. At this point the series seems to be moving from “righteous killings” to “killing for the sake of it” without Kramer’s direct input, but I quite enjoyed the cat-and-mouse amongst the police officers and the small group of people playing the ‘games’. It also seems to me that the series is at a bit of a cross roads now: how does it really keep on going without Kramer? Copycats that want to continue the ‘games’ are one thing, but what about Kramer’s modus operandi? For the series to have any real validation going forward, it surely needs to bring back a sense of reasoning, no matter how warped or flawed it may be. I am very much invested in this series now, if only to see how they decide to move forward, for better or worse…

Saw VI (2009)
Director: Kevin Greutert
3/5

Jigsaw somehow continues his reign of self-righteous terror from beyond the grave, this time targeting the insurance company that essentially determines whether someone lives or dies, with a particular focus on the company’s top executive whom Kramer himself dealt with before his passing. Thus far, the films are better than I remember. I like the way the story continues to weave and flash back to previous points to expand on them and show how they connect to current events. In a way it’s an ingenious way to retcon any discrepancies or set up future events that the writers want to see happen, thus keeping the series well and truly (and ironically) alive. The use of insurance companies and the inhumane way in which they operate made for quite a pool of victims and was certainly inkeeping with Jigsaw’s M.O, however it’s starting to get a little stagnant in the realms of teaching lessons, instead moving with a character’s need to punish rather than enlighten, if you will. The ‘games’ are also starting to get a little recognisable and repetitive, so we might need a fresh pair of eyes and ideas for the next ones. Still, I’m fully entrenched in the series and have no desire to stop here.

Saw VII/Saw: The Final Chapter (Saw 3D) (2010)
Director: Kevin Greutert
2.5/5

It’s no secret by this point that John Kramer is well and truly dead, yet somehow his influence, his apprentices and his ‘prodigies’ continue his work almost as if it were him, but with far less meaning. Now, a man claiming to be a survivor of one of Jigsaw’s ‘games’ receives fame and fortune as he attempts to help other survivors, only to soon find himself actually trapped in a ‘game’. You would think this really would have been the final installment, with Kramer being dead. Not so, apparently, but they dangle so much in this film that could help build a solid future for the series only to throw it away or completely underutilise it, particularly with the inclusion of an original character and involving a big name like Chester Bennington (RIP). The ‘games’ and ‘traps’ continue to be quite inventive and creative, but the story is beginning to feel drawn out for no good reason. The ending felt somewhat satisfying and kind of brought the cycle to an end, but, as we’re soon to find out, ‘The Book of Saw’ is hardly a circle, more akin to a spiral.

Jigsaw (2017)
Director: The Spierig Brothers
2.5/5

Honestly, a Saw film isn’t really a Saw film without John Kramer, but they just won’t let the man rest. As someone who was an original apprentice to Kramer once again continues his work, some cops get on the case assuming them to be another copycat. This one generally steps away from the main through-line and introduces characters not directly related to it, which can be a little confusing at times, especially at the end – you really need to pay attention to understand just what the hell is going on and how events play out. The characters are pretty uninteresting here, and although Kramer appears in a limited capacity, it’s only his scenes that feel worthwhile and pertain strongly to the Jigsaw mythos as a whole. It’s all now starting to feel like money-grabbing and an attempt to capitalise on a once-popular franchise.

Spiral (2021)
Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
2/5

The absolute weakest film in the series so far, Spiral features a very out-of-place Chris Rock in the lead role as a cop chasing another Jigsaw wannabe. With this film labeled as being “from the Book of Saw”, it’s on the periphery of the series, and rather than feature Jigsaw or any of his apprentices, it takes influence from his traps to spawn a revenge story, with the story itself being the most predictable of all Saw films and with the most bland characters. As much as Chris Rock wanted to star in a horror film, it is just not the genre for him. His performance comes off as confusingly comical when it really shouldn’t be, and is flat at other times. Samuel L. Jackson was a surprise, and although he does his best with the material given, this project felt below his usual calibre. On the one hand I’m glad the series didn’t stop here, because it would have been such a sad and anti-climactic end, but now I’m more worn out with what people are trying to do with the story only for it to be disappointing.

Saw X (2023)
Director: Kevin Greutert
4/5

I had saved this film for a Friday night in, and I was so worried I’d be wasting a good movie night on a terrible film. Thankfully, I was far from disappointed. Perhaps it was because my expectations were already pretty low, but I really enjoyed this latest entry. It takes place between Saw and Saw II and has John Kramer front and centre as the lead character, pre-death, something that we should have had years ago, and sees him taking revenge on some scammers who tried to convince him they had cured his cancer. In hindsight, this film really should have been Saw II, or at least come earlier in the series. That, or killing off John Kramer at all was just a terrible idea because, as the writing and Tobin Bell’s excellent performance have proven in Saw X, he is truly the bloody heart and warped soul of the franchise. Saw X also stands out as being the best entry since Saw because it has actual substance, something almost all the previous films lacked when focusing on people trying to emulate Jigsaw rather than be Jigsaw. None could really fathom Kramer’s thought process because none suffered in the same way he did and had their mentality irrevocably changed. Not to mention, I was very conflicted about the empathy I felt for Kramer, an empathy that has eluded me throughout the series until now. On top of that, it features perhaps the most horrendous and gory traps yet, which is saying a lot, I think, and is quite satisfying for fans of the series.

Watching Saw has been quite a ride (perhaps that’s why theme parks have featured rides and attractions inspired by it!), and for the most part, it has been enjoyable and I would absolutely sit through it again, if only to get to Saw X. It would be a good chapter to end on, but with James Wan looking to return to the series alongside horror production legends Blumhouse, who now own Twisted Pictures’ stake in the franchise, it doesn’t look like this will be the last we hear from Jigsaw. Watch this space, because it looks like we’re going to be playing more games…