Second Viewing: Saw (2004)

So Saw definitely has its problems, but most of these problems are due to it being such a low budget film. James Wan makes the most of what he has to work with, using quick edits and speeding up the footage to hide his lack of coverage. So while that’s dated and a cliche at this point, it’s understandable why they did it.

Saw mostly succeeds, however, on the strength of its premise. With two people waking up, chained in a bathroom, not knowing how they got there, you’re in for a fun ride.

Neither character is exactly what he seems, and a big part of me wishes it stayed in this room. I guess that’s probably tough to pull off for a 100-minute movie, but it is incredibly compelling nonetheless. Some of the problems come with the flashbacks. While the timeline of the series would only be more confusing in the future, even here, it’s sometimes hard to track where you are chronologically.

But hey, it’s pretty good. It has a fantastic ending, which makes up for some of its faults. And we’ve got a podcast episode on it and The Vast of Night, so check that out. https://anchor.fm/revengeofthedrivein/episodes/Saw-2004-and-The-Vast-of-Night-2020-eolce0

Rating: 6/10