The only sub-genre of Horror that I’ve ever felt to be rightfully maligned is so-called “Torture Porn”. Films where the plot is nothing more than an excuse for gruesome, sometimes elaborate, scenes of extended pain. Like the slasher genre before it, most of these films are simply knockoffs intended to capitalize on the originality of the film that did it first while at the same time discarding the things that made the originator great. The original in the slasher genre was, of course, “Halloween”. The originator of ‘torture porn’ was the great, underrated SAW. None of the subsequent imitators of SAW, or even its own sequels, have ever come close to replicating the quality and impact of James Wan’s low-budget/big payoff 2004 movie.
More below!
A young man named Adam Stanheight (Leigh Whannell), suddenly awakens in a bathtub full of water in a filthy, dilapidated bathroom. As he gets out, he finds himself chained by his ankle to a pipe on the wall. He also sees that he is not alone. Across the room, a doctor named Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) is likewise chained to a pipe by his ankle. As the two men discuss their circumstance, they find microtapes in their pockets, and a player in the middle of the room near a dead body. The tapes inform them that they have only a few hours for one of them to kill the other, or else they both will die. Lawrence realizes that they are they latest victims of a serial killer called Jigsaw, and that he knows this because he was once a suspect. Slowly, truths are revealed about the two men that link them as they try to figure out a way to outsmart Jigsaw.
The key to what makes SAW work so well, and what subsequent imitators ignored, is the fact that the film plays just as well as a mystery thriller as a Horror movie. Director James Wan and screenwriter Leigh Whannell expertly unveil the awful truths and genuinely disturbing shocks using smart dialogue and an intelligent pacing. The look and feel of SAW is first-rate and it made the film world stand and take notice of James Wan - easily the most exciting young Horror director in a decade. Wan establishes an easy tempo early on, then ramps it up so gradually that by the end, the tension is utterly unbearable. It all culminates in a twist ending that I promise you will not see coming.
A mystery full of twists, an intelligent villain, set design that is as creepy as it is repulsive. - SAW does an awful lot of things right. This film does indeed contain some bloody and gruesome moments, but these play a vital role in the telling of the tale and are not remotely gratuitous. Yes, this movie sparked a movement that has been limited in its artistic vision, but that does not diminish the genuine originality and quality of SAW.
Parental Guide: Keep this one adults only. 18+
SAW fun facts - The film had only an 18 day shooting schedule - shooting and editing occurred simultaneously. The actors had few rehearsals, and the rehearsal takes were sometimes all that were shot.
The film was originally conceived as a stage play.
The bathroom scenes were shot in chronological order so Cary Elwes and Leigh Whannell could relate more to what their characters were experiencing.
The famous Jigsaw puppet was made completely from scratch.
Jigsaw - “Congratulations. You are still alive. Most people are so ungrateful to be alive. But not you. Not anymore.”
Dr. Gordon - “He doesn't want us to cut through our chains. He wants us to cut through our feet.”
Detective Tapp - “You know, we arrested a dentist last week who liked to play with kids a bit too much. He lived two blocks from here. The sewer lines run under this neighborhood too, doctor.”