Film Review

Saw (2004) — impressive horror debut that began a long-running franchise

Two strangers, who awaken in a room with no memory of how they got there, discover they’re pawns in a serial killer’s deadly game…

Horror is a popular genre for independent filmmakers looking to break into the industry, partly because it’s relatively cheap to produce and thus turn a sizeable profit. In James Wan’s Saw, the setup is two men chained up in a bathroom, and it launched an iconic horror franchise that’s grossed $976M.

I still remember everyone talking about a new horror movie where a man had to saw off his foot to escape. Even more distinctive, the poster corroborates the anecdote: a man’s foot and a bloody hacksaw. I didn’t need to hear about characters or backstory, it presented an image that had to be seen to be believed.