Saw III Discussion Thread

Jason Roer · 10-27-2006, 05:54 PM

Hey All,

I was surprised to discover there wasn't a single thread revolving around what will most likely be the number one movie at the box office this weekend.

Anyway, I just got back. To give you a little background - I thought the first Saw had a great concept, but I really didn't like the execution. Just didn't work for me. I thought the second one was slightly better in execution, however it lacked the inspiration of the first one - that great novelty of concept.

With Saw 3, I had my best experience with the franchise. I think it started with the pack - probably 15 - of 13 year olds who snuck in. Just brought me back to when that sort of thing was so damn exciting and I think it set the tone for how I would take in the movie. Hell, their conversation was worth the price of admission alone and so I was in a great mood.

On to the film. Well, I found it engaging this time around. The problems I had with the first 2 installments were still there - I hate the MTV style editing they've developed, clearly a Dan Bousman thing as James Wan's did not share this annoying (at least for me) trait. Despite this, I was interested in seeing where they were taking us. And it did feel mostly satisfying at the end. My biggest gripe with this one was what I consider to be a major plot hole or a major oversight on the part of the studio. I've heard this was intended to have a much longer runtime and that a director's cut DVD will include much more footage, so it could all wrap up nicely in the extended cut. If someone can tell me how to spoilerize I will put it out there and we can see if it's just something I missed or something the studio missed - but it revolves around the opening scene with the female doctor, Lynn. What aggravated me was that by simply removing one line, there wouldn't be a hole. Again, with additional footage I can see how they might be able to solve it, but it would work much better if only they lost that damn line. Oh Well.

Cheers,

Jason

Greg_S_H · 10-27-2006, 06:28 PM

Quote:

With Saw 3, I had my best experience with the franchise. I think it started with the pack - probably 15 - of 13 year olds who snuck in. Just brought me back to when that sort of thing was so damn exciting and I think it set the tone for how I would take in the movie. Hell, their conversation was worth the price of admission alone and so I was in a great mood.

Heh. That's got to be a first. I usually groan when a bunch of kids come in, but I guess the kind of crowd you want depends on the movie you're seeing.

Every time the commercial comes on and the guy says, "Suffering. You haven't seen anything yet," I always think he's going to say, "Suffering succotash!"

I have never seen a Saw movie, but there was a Smallville episode last season that was apparently a complete ripoff. It was an interesting concept, so maybe I'll check one out sometime.

Paul_Medenwaldt · 10-27-2006, 11:34 PM

Just got home from seeing it and they were carding people as they walked into the screen. I saw a few kids walk away as they would of got busted for buying a ticket to a different movie.

I thought this movie followed more closely to the pace of the first movie. It took a while to get going, though it did keep you interested, there was just too much time lapse between the different plots.

The one thing I have a question on is towards the end when he was lying in his bed and going through the development of the game, there was a quick scene of him putting what looked like a wax substance over a book of matches. It was so quick I couldn't guage what exactly it was.

They set this one up to move right into a 4th movie, unlike the other 2 there were somewhat of an end.

I almost was expecting at the end when he was explaining his game to Amanda that he was going to get up and be faking his ailments, just proving how much he would go through to execute his game.

It was also a lot gorier then the other 2. This one i'll have to certainly watch again closer when it comes to DVD.

Paul

CoreyII · 10-28-2006, 04:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greg_S_H

Heh. That's got to be a first. I usually groan when a bunch of kids come in, but I guess the kind of crowd you want depends on the movie you're seeing.

Every time the commercial comes on and the guy says, "Suffering. You haven't seen anything yet," I always think he's going to say, "Suffering succotash!"

I have never seen a Saw movie, but there was a Smallville episode last season that was apparently a complete ripoff. It was an interesting concept, so maybe I'll check one out sometime.

Hey Greg,

You could do no worse then to at least check out Saw I at least once. I and II are both good movies (at least in my opinion), I've really enjoyed them. As far as horror movies goes, the Saw franchise in my opinion is the best thing going right now. It's not a remake of a Japanese horror movie and it isn't rehashing the slasher concept for the umpteenth time. As a matter of fact, the film's central villain Jigsaw comes off more as a demented Batman villain then an actual horror movie villain.

I actually caught an episode of Fear Factor a few days ago. In this episode a bunch of people had their head placed inside a glass box filled with either tarantulas or snakes. With the box on their heads they had to move across an oil slicked floor to get to their respective keys and unlock the box around their heads. As I was watching this episode it dawned on me why movies like Saw make money; we are a generation primed for this sort of entertainment. I mean placing someone's head inside a box full of spiders or snakes is definitely something Jigsaw would come up with.

Greg_S_H · 10-28-2006, 02:14 PM

I tend to agree with your likes and dislikes when it comes to sci-fi and comic book movies, so I'll make an effort. The original is playing on cable quite a bit right now, but I think I'll keep doing title searches until it comes up on one of the HD channels.

**HTF Ads**

Holadem · 10-28-2006, 04:25 PM

I never watched any incarnation of the franchise either, but it's kinda hard to avoid the hype. Even a lady friend who hates "ugly stuff" (her words), doesn't do Halloween, and who I can't even get to watch Aliens tells me it (Saw) is a good movie, WTF?

.

The problem is that gore, torture, mutilations, suffering and depravity hold no appeal to me at all. Neither do slashers (though the Scream flicks were fun). The only kind of horror I enjoy is psychological. So... am I likely to enjoy this movie?

I am thinking about this for the sake a good theatrical experience. This sort of stuff can be fun with a whole bunch of people and eh, tis Halloween...

--
H

Jason Roer · 10-28-2006, 05:17 PM

Holadem,

If you go with a bnch of friends you're sure to have a good time. This was more of a thriller than a horror film - in fact, I didn't find it scary at all. A couple of icky spots do to the incredible sound design and some gory effects. This film keeps you captivated and interested in what's going on. The only thing is, I really think it would be wise to see the first 2 films before watching Saw 3. You'll just get more out of it. This film had the most character development (though they still needed more - here's hoping the director's cut will solve this). Be forewarned about Saw 1. The acting is really rather poor - and from usually talented indivduals. My guess is the abbreviated shooting schedule killed them. They had 17 days to complete the film. They also didn't have a ton of film just lying around. I imagine they had to get most shots in 1 take.

Anyway, it's definately worth a shot. For what it's worth, my wife loved the first film and she's not usually a horror fan. Hope this helps. Have a great time at the movies!

Cheers,

Jason

CoreyII · 10-28-2006, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Holadem

I never watched any incarnation of the franchise either, but it's kinda hard to avoid the hype. Even a lady friend who hates "ugly stuff" (her words), doesn't do Halloween, and who I can't even get to watch Aliens tells me it (Saw) is a good movie, WTF?

.

The problem is that gore, torture, mutilations, suffering and depravity hold no appeal to me at all. Neither do slashers (though the Scream flicks were fun). The only kind of horror I enjoy is psychological. So... am I likely to enjoy this movie?

I am thinking about this for the sake a good theatrical experience. This sort of stuff can be fun with a whole bunch of people and eh, tis Halloween...

--
H

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason Roer

Holadem,

If you go with a bnch of friends you're sure to have a good time. This was more of a thriller than a horror film - in fact, I didn't find it scary at all. A couple of icky spots do to the incredible sound design and some gory effects. This film keeps you captivated and interested in what's going on. The only thing is, I really think it would be wise to see the first 2 films before watching Saw 3. You'll just get more out of it. This film had the most character development (though they still needed more - here's hoping the director's cut will solve this). Be forewarned about Saw 1. The acting is really rather poor - and from usually talented indivduals. My guess is the abbreviated shooting schedule killed them. They had 17 days to complete the film. They also didn't have a ton of film just lying around. I imagine they had to get most shots in 1 take.

Anyway, it's definately worth a shot. For what it's worth, my wife loved the first film and she's not usually a horror fan. Hope this helps. Have a great time at the movies!

Cheers,

Jason

Hey Holadem,

I agree with Jason for the most part, except I didn't have a problem with the acting. As far as psychological goes, well if you are speaking in a post Silence of the Lambs / SE7EN terms then I would say the Jigsaw character is really a twisted hybrid of Hannibal Lecture and John Doe, there are definitely similarities.

Jigsaw is a bit more Hannibal-like in Saw 2. So as Jason has stated you should watch the first two films, but if you really aren't into torture and suffering well then I'll be honest the Saw films are what they are. Where as Silence of the Lambs and definitely SE7EN left much up to the imagination, the Saw films don't do that.

CoreyII · 10-28-2006, 07:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Greg_S_H

I tend to agree with your likes and dislikes when it comes to sci-fi and comic book movies, so I'll make an effort. The original is playing on cable quite a bit right now, but I think I'll keep doing title searches until it comes up on one of the HD channels.

Thanks for the support Greg,

I really hope you like the film, if not I'll feel kind of bad for highly recommending it to you. But I do understand not every one is going to like everything. Anyway please let me know what you think.

Patrick Sun · 10-28-2006, 08:56 PM

Am I nuts to be laughing at some of the grisly bits in this film? It was dark and comedic, but not quite a dark comedy. There's a lull in the start of the middle section of the film (mainly the start of Jeff's subplot), but after that, the film settles into a nice rhythm of gore and mayhem that most people want and expect from this film franchise.

I give it 2.75 stars or a grade of B-.