Which "Saw" have you seen? Ranking the "Saw" movies.
I want to play a game….
This week the 8th installment of the “Saw” series hits the theaters and horror fans will be flooding the multiplex to see the latest contraptions Jigsaw has in store. After a seven-year hiatus, the film “Jigsaw” will continue the notorious legacy of the serial killer…Jigsaw.
Unlike the slasher movies of the 80s or the exploitation horror of the 70s, the 2000s saw a surge of stylized gore and scenery concocted for pure punishment. This type of film has been aptly named “torture porn.” You know them: Hostel, The Collector, Saws, etc. As of late, the paranormal and the hand-held have captivated audiences, but even the most die-hard fan has to admit the” Paranormal Activity” films have run their course. With Jigsaw possibly back from the dead, could the torture porn craze see a resurrection?
The IT Records podcast has created a definite list of the best “Saw” movies. Check it out below before venturing out to see the carnage of “Jigsaw.”
7. Saw V
This movie was by far the most absurd and pointless movie in the film series. This is where Agent Strahm is on the tale of Hoffman: the new Jigsaw. Also, Hoffman has decided to use the traps for his own benefit and make some of them not allow for people to win. Meanwhile, five people are in a room together who committed some arson crime together? A big who cares.
6. Saw 3D: The Final Chapter
I hesitated to place this film last. A big no-no of any horror franchise is titling a film “The Final Chapter.” It rarely will be, especially in a series like this where it seems everyone and anyone can be Jigsaw. Just wait until the end and you figure out how Jigsaw pulled it all off. I didn’t think it was possible for a film to commit the same two mistakes the “Friday the 13th” franchise did in one movie, but thanks “Saw!” you proved me wrong. All you had to do was put this movie in space and you could have had the trifecta.
5. Saw IV
This was tough. I did not like “Saw VI” or “Saw IV” very much, but I think Saw IV takes the cake. This was the first film to involve Hoffman and the multiple timelines/flashbacks. It was the departure from the original plan of a “Saw” trilogy. It’s the first movie which really shits the bed. You know that common phrase from most none horror or non-Saw fans will say, “They all blur together. They are just gore.” Well, you can thank “Saw IV” for that and each film after.
4. Saw VI
The health insurance company one. This film is way too fast and you care very little about any character. Jigsaw’s wife got a trap in the will from him?! Did no law enforcement check that? This film could be passed up and skipped to the final chapter if you just wanted to see how it all played out.
3. Saw II
If you have been keeping track, the first three for me are the first three films. Saw II did what any good sequel should do: it up the stakes, and thus upped the gore. This film has the house of all the former inmates of Detective Matthews and his son. We see Jigsaw unmasked for the first time and learn a lot about the rules of the games. Instead of two men in a room in “Saw,” we get a whole house of people and Jigsaw has rigged the place for death.
2. Saw III
We now know Jigsaw isn’t working alone. Amanda is now fully part of the story as his lieutenant, working to become his successor after his terminal cancer finally claims him. Then, you get man named Jeff who has to work his way through a Jigsaw trap palace in order to reach existential redemption. It would have been a perfect culminating end to a gore-fest of box-office success. You had the carnage. You had possibly the most thematic and dense “Saw” of the series. I wish the series had put a nail in the coffin after this one…
Saw
You guessed it. The first was clearly the best. The premise, “How far would you go to survive?” is an excellent premise and the first “Saw” deserves a place in horror film history. The traps were innovative at the time and Jigsaw’s voice was gargled and ominous. So, there you have it. Check the ones you would like to before you head out to see “Jigsaw.”
