Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
Cast: Tobin Bell, Scott Patterson, Costas Mandylor, Betsy Russell, Lyriq Bent
Screenplay: Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan
93 mins. Rated R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture throughout, and for language.

I say it every time we discuss this franchise: I love the Saw movies. I’ve been a fan since seeing a DVD of the original film twenty years ago. The interlocking puzzle of mysteries, twists and turns, and interesting ethical dilemmas always enticed me more than any of the more graphic content. With all that, even I could not fathom how the producing team behind the series would conjure up a continuation to a pretty definitive Saw III, but they did, and…it was certainly the weakest installment up to that point.

Saw IV picks up with the autopsy of John Kramer (Tobin Bell, Goodfellas), showcasing how very much dead the notorious killer is, but even though he’s gone, the games have just begun. Overzealous cop Rigg (Lyriq Bent, Four Brothers) has been selected to play a new series of games, as he is forced to see the world through Jigsaw’s point of view. While Rigg traverses the city looking for salvation, a pair of FBI agents are tracking him, questioning the identity of another Jigsaw apprentice.

Saw III provided a very conclusive finale to the original trilogy of highly popular films, leaving many to wonder, myself included, how the series would continue when Saw IV was announced. Frequent collaborators James Wan and Leigh Whannell took a step back, this time in producer-only roles, and many writers were offered up the chance to figure out where to go next. In comes Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, two writers I was familiar with from their splatter feature Feast, and if you’re looking for an easy answer as to how the Saw franchise would continue, it does take all movie long before those answers are revealed. So are they serviceable answers?

Well, most of the twists and turns of this sequel are just variations on other films in the series, which made the ending feel a bit lackluster. This is the first time, as well, that the major twist of the film is purely for the audience and not the characters involved. That twist was the best one, the most surprising reveal that made me want to rewatch the series all over again.

As far as the rest of the writing, this installment just left so many questions with me after the movie ended, questions that I haven’t been able to answer over a decade later. For example, Rigg is the main test subject this time around, and outside of his being a cop, I still can’t quite figure out Jigsaw’s reason for testing him. They keep telling him that he shouldn’t go through an unsecure door, as if that’s a valid reason, which made no sense to me. Then, I couldn’t get over the fact that he’s freely maneuvering throughout the city to each location for his test. Why he didn’t call anyone or just not go to the next location confused me. There was nothing keeping him here like Jeff from the previous film. Rigg could very easily contact the FBI and get help, but he doesn’t, and it’s never fully explained why he just goes with the flow.

Melton & Dunstan’s script does make the smart choice to examine Jigsaw’s origin, creating a need for Tobin Bell’s continued return in the following entries. His is the magic that keeps the franchise alive, and without Bell’s return, the films would lose a lot of their purpose. This time around, the focus is on what made John Kramer break bad, and director Darren Lynn Bousman (Repo! The Genetic Opera), returning for his third round of directing, brings in a number of familiar ties that helped to strengthen the cohesive bond of the films, like returning cast members in the flashbacks.

Bousman is certainly the MVP of Saw IV, electing to experiment with the visual flair of the Saw franchise by creating some incredible and difficult shots. He successfully creates a more dynamic and fluidly paced sequel by transitioning from one scene to another without cutting by placing sets next to each other, having actors move behind the camera to appear in the next scene, and keeping the camera flowing to create the sense of a ticking-clock situation and make the audience question what they’re actually seeing and the truth of it all. The fact that he was able to accomplish this in-camera without the use of CGI.

Saw IV is the weakest of the first four entries, a film occasionally successful with getting the franchise on its feet again, with a few terrific sequences (that autopsy scene as an opener and closer is brilliant), but littered with clunky explanations and more than a few questions. Hardcore Saw films, like me, can still find a lot to like about this one, but general moviegoers certainly need not apply.

2.5/5
-Kyle A. Goethe

• For my review of James Wan’s Saw, click here.
• For my review of Kevin Greutert’s Saw X, click here.
• For my review of Darren Lynn Bousman’s Saw II, click here.
• For my review of Darren Lynn Bousman’s Saw III, click here.
• For my review of Darren Lynn Bousman’s Repo! The Genetic Opera, click here.
• For my review of Darren Lynn Bousman’s The Devil’s Carnival, click here.
• For my review of the anthology film Tales of Halloween, click here.
• For my review of Darren Lynn Bousman’s Alleluia! The Devil’s Carnival, click here.