Let The Games Begin – The Saw Phenomenon

When Saw sliced its way into theatres back in 2004, no one was prepared for the blood drenched impact it would make. It also heralded a new style of movie making now classed as “torture porn”. Shot for a pocket friendly million dollars, it made low budget horror cool again and delivered a story that was so intense it sent people screaming from theatres. And boy, did we love it? In fact there’s a saying in Hollywood now, “If it’s Halloween, It’s Saw”.

The idea is truly original; a dying man designs gruesome games to be solved by those who he feels are sinners and don’t respect life. The killer is given the tag name Jigsaw and is played to perfection by Tobin Bell. From the infamous self-mutilation piece to the heart stopping final scene, Saw was a tour de force of adrenaline pumping horror. Three equally inventive sequels followed and on October 25th Saw V will be unleashed in cinemas up and down the country.

Picking up directly where Saw IV ended, Saw V centres on Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) who is seemingly the last person alive to carry on the Jigsaw legacy. But when his secret is threatened, he must go on the hunt to eliminate all loose ends.

And that’s all you need to know about this, the most anticipated entry into the frightening film franchise. Saw IV made the series stronger by delving into the psyche of John Kramer and how he became the killer known as Jigsaw. By giving him a past and a real human side it provided him with a reason why he executes his twisted version of justice, even though it’s incredibly unorthodox, highly illegal and let’s face it, pretty sick! By keeping the story set in the real world, Saw never strays into fantasy, something which ruined the Friday the 13th movie series.

Instead it keeps the horror set very much in the real world making the experience even more believable. Tobin Bell just gets better and better with each instalment but how he’s going to appear as Jigsaw in this movie I have no idea considering the character was given an autopsy in Saw IV!

Director David Hackl served as Second Unit Director and Production Designer on Saw III and IV so he really knows what the fans want from this series and I wager he delivers the blood and gore in buckets. If any of you think he can’t just remind yourselves of the “pig grinder” sequence from Saw III and rest your fears.

We have no idea if Saw V is the last piece of the puzzle to this fantastic franchise but I bet it’s the biggest and best instalment yet. Let the games begin.

Saw V has been given an 18 certificate and will be released in cinemas on October 24th.

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