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Average User Score: 8 (306 sources)

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Anthropophagus

-1

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'Saw' is rather like last decade's 'Scream'. Like that movie, it's a popular horror movie that is both clever, and made with genuine knowledge of the minute details in and that go into horror movies. It's an astoundingly unique and creative film...
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'Saw' is rather like last decade's 'Scream'. Like that movie, it's a popular horror movie that is both clever, and made with genuine knowledge of the minute details in and that go into horror movies. It's an astoundingly unique and creative film that accomplishes so much on a budget of just one million. It's gory as hell, brutal and positively relentless.

Personally, I wouldn't call it one of my favorite horror movies, and while it definitely deserves recognition, it has become a little too popular and the ever-growing franchise has gone in the same direction the 'Friday the 13th' sequels did. The emphasis is not on being clever or scary, or developing the plot or characters, it's on gore. It's on pain. It's on suffering. While 'Saw's emphasis is on those things, it doesn't revolve around them or rely on them, so for those who like just that in a movie, then you're not going to enjoy this movie. For the people who actually matter, however, check this film out. It's not for everyone though.

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Posted sep 14, 2008 6:38 pm pt

ThePhantomOfOz

-1

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The only scary part of these movies is the doll. If you can handle blood and slightly disturbing situations, then you'd absolutely love this movie and the other three.

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Posted jun 17, 2008 11:33 pm pt

therockstop

-1

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This movie freaked me out. The scary thing is there are people like this in our world. I about quit watching it as I could not get into it but the further I got the more I was interested.

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Posted may 26, 2008 10:52 pm pt

MaryBlond

-1

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this movie reveals the human cruelty, good for those who like to scenes of horror.

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Posted may 3, 2008 12:13 am pt

The_Gnat_5000

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For the idea alone, I want to give it a better grade then that. As it is an interesting idea, but the direction and the acting are so bad, as well as the dialog, that I can't rate it any higher. I would love to see some actual talent in acting,...
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For the idea alone, I want to give it a better grade then that. As it is an interesting idea, but the direction and the acting are so bad, as well as the dialog, that I can't rate it any higher. I would love to see some actual talent in acting, directing, and writing get their hands on this in a few years and remake it into something that is actually good, but as it is right now, it isn't.

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Posted apr 10, 2008 12:57 am pt

zophar53

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Saw is a horror movie not of the supernatural kind, but of the very greusome and human kind. If any of you remember Se7en, than you know what I mean. The basis is that a serial killer is making a reputation for himself by teaching the scum of...
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Saw is a horror movie not of the supernatural kind, but of the very greusome and human kind. If any of you remember Se7en, than you know what I mean. The basis is that a serial killer is making a reputation for himself by teaching the scum of society the error of their ways using very torturous means. For example, one of his victims failed to commit suicide by slitting his wrist. To teach him to value his life, the killer trapped him in a maze of barbed wire naked, promising that there was a way out, if he could only find it and crawl through.
While the forced attrition theme could be considered a copy of Se7en and other films, the story is told rather differently. We begin our journey by waking up with two of the main characters, who find themselves trapped in a large, filthy, delapidated old bathroom with nothing but a dead body in the middle of the room and large chains around their ankles cofining them to large pipes. Quickly, they each find an audio tape in their posession telling them that if one person does not kill the other in a certain time frame, they will both be killed. They each have a story to tell, and the more we learn of the backstory, the pair slowly start following clues left for them as they try to solve this deadly puzzle. The ticking clock and the disturbing nature of events do a wonderful job of building suspense.
We also meet the cop in charge of the investigation, one minute a determined detective, next minute an injured hero who becomes insanely obsessed with cracking this case and bringing the culprit to justice. Midway through the movie, we are not sure who to trust, as every character has their own role and their own secrets.
By the time we get to the end of the film, almost all the pieces have fallen into place, and the resulting picture comes together nicely. The surprises are far from over however, as the last couple of scenes will have you wincing and asking yourself how much courage you would have in the same situation, followed by one of the most blind-sided twists in recent memory.
If you enjoyed Se7en, you will definately be able to appreciate Saw. Also like that film, it may not be your cup of tea if you have a weak stomach. There is nothing that is in your face graphic, but the quick, frantic cutting style of the human death traps makes it easy to conjure up some horrific images if you have an active imagination. Saw has some similarities to what has come before it, but is more than unique enough to have it's own identity. It is a tension filled two hours, with an ending that more than pays off the time you spent with it.

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Posted feb 13, 2008 11:15 am pt

MaxoidRodi

-1

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Not just another bloody disgusting movie... But one with a smart plot and a twist that'll make your head spin!

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Posted feb 4, 2008 7:10 pm pt

jaws2341

-1

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i rather watch this one than any of the others well saw 2 was good but still

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Posted jan 21, 2008 7:05 am pt

jaws2341

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i rather watch this one than any of the others well saw 2 was good but still

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Posted jan 21, 2008 7:04 am pt

dusansol

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Saw is one of the best films. All tree, I didnt watch the last one. I hope it will be a blast. I like Saw because it isnt a classical horror. Its much more, the story is great.

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Posted nov 5, 2007 6:00 am pt

• [+] Film Threat
  
  90
  May be the best independent horror film to have come out since "The Blair Witch Project." It's certainly better than "Blair Witch", and more fun, more gruesome, and more macabre. In a very delightful way.

  by Heidi Martinuzzi | Read Full Review »
• [+] Seattle Post-Intelligencer
  
  83
  The filmmakers piece it together with almost clockwork perfection and deliver it with masterful misdirection, creating the most ingenious, eccentric and brazenly jaundiced psycho-thriller to come along in years.

  by Sean Axmaker | Read Full Review »
• [+] Empire
  
  80
  As good an all-out, non-camp horror movie as we’ve had lately.

  by Kim Newman | Read Full Review »
• [+] Chicago Tribune
  
  75
  Wan's tense, grisly cinematic morsel won't go down easy. But once it hits bottom, Saw is oddly satisfying, though the gag reflex never entirely goes away.

  by Robert K. Elder | Read Full Review »
• [+] ReelViews
  
  75
  Saw is for hard-gore horror aficionados only.

  by James Berardinelli | Read Full Review »
• [+] San Francisco Chronicle
  
  75
  The slasher scenes, though relatively few, are amazingly evocative for such a low-budget movie.

  by Carla Meyer | Read Full Review »
• [+] Christian Science Monitor
  
  75
  Horror fans will find plenty to shriek about. Everyone else should keep their distance.

  by David Sterritt | Read Full Review »
• [+] Slate
  
  70
  Less a classical narrative than an ingenious machine for inducing terror, rage, and paralyzing unease.

  by David Edelstein | Read Full Review »
• [+] The Hollywood Reporter
  
  70
  Boasts an undeniably original premise and clever plot machinations that lift it several notches above the usual slasher film level.

  by Frank Scheck | Read Full Review »
• [+] Entertainment Weekly
  
  67
  Saw is a gristle-cut B psycho thriller that would like to tap the sickest corners of your imagination. It has a few moments of nightmare creepiness, but it's also derivative and messy and too nonsensical for its own good.

  by Owen Gleiberman | Read Full Review »
• [+] Dallas Observer
  
  60
  It's brutal horror, where anyone can die at any time, and gorehounds will love it. Average folks may find it too intense.

  by Luke Y. Thompson | Read Full Review »
• [+] The New York Times
  
  60
  Does a better-than-average job of conveying the panic and helplessness of men terrorized by a sadist in a degrading environment, but it is still not especially scary.

  by Stephen Holden | Read Full Review »
• [+] Los Angeles Times
  
  60
  Saw is so full of twists it ends up getting snarled. For all of his flashy engineering and inventive torture scenarios, the Jigsaw Killer comes across as an amateur. Hannibal Lecter would have him for lunch.

  by Carina Chocano | Read Full Review »
• [+] The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
  
  50
  Let's just say this: It's a lucky thing I wasn't shackled to my seat in the theatre during this movie. I'd be limping home.

  by Leah McLaren | Read Full Review »
• [+] Boston Globe
  
  50
  As long as Saw stays in that big, nasty bathroom, all we need to believe is the knot in our stomachs.

  by Wesley Morris | Read Full Review »