Saw
2004 · Directed by James Wan
Original language: English
- horror
- mystery
- crime
The story
Two men wake up to find themselves shackled in a grimy, abandoned bathroom. As they struggle to comprehend their predicament, they discover a disturbing tape left behind by the sadistic mastermind known as Jigsaw. With a chilling voice and cryptic instructions, Jigsaw informs them that they must partake in a gruesome game in order to secure their freedom.
What it’s like
Grimy, low-key and sickly: a dingy bathroom lit by a single bare bulb and the sallow green cast of old tile, with the camera mostly locked in tight, claustrophobic frames and quick, jittery cuts that snap between the two trapped men and their dim surroundings. The palette is murky browns, rust and cold, dirty blues, with a grainy digital texture that makes everything feel damp and unclean. Sound does much of the work: a restless, sparse score that surges into metallic clangs, distorted tape playback and the crackle of a sinister, mechanical voice. Pacing is tense and relentless, with long stretches of paralysed dread punctuated by sudden shocks. Its emotional register is bleak, paranoid and grim, following two desperate men whose panic gradually curdles into suspicion and moral reckoning. It is intense: explicit gore, graphic self-mutilation and torture scenes, with frequent shocking violence and a constant threat of cruelty, so it will not suit anyone seeking something gentle. Best for viewers who want a nasty, twisty late-night thriller and enjoy hard-edged survival horror with a puzzle at its core.
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