Saw V (2008)

Director:

David Hackl

Writers:

Patrick Melton (screenplay) &
Marcus Dunstan (screenplay)

Release Date:

24 October 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

You won't believe how it ends.

Plot:

Following Jigsaw's grisly demise, Mark Hoffman, the final apprentice to the serial killer is deigned a hero. Meanwhile, Agent Strahm is tested and follows all the leads he can get until it boils down to a gruesome and bone-crushing finale. |

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Jigsaw | Corpse | Promotion | Rogue Cop

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Tobin Bell	...	Jigsaw / John Kramer
Costas Mandylor	...	Mark Hoffman
Scott Patterson	...	Agent Peter Strahm
Betsy Russell	...	Jill
Julie Benz	...	Brit
Meagan Good	...	Luba
Mark Rolston	...	Dan Erickson
Carlo Rota	...	Charles
Greg Bryk	...	Mallick
Laura Gordon	...	Ashley
Joris Jarsky	...	Seth
Mike Butters	...	Paul
Al Sapienza	...	Chief of Police
Mike Realba	...	Detective Fisk
Lyriq Bent	...	Rigg (archive footage)

Also Known As:

Décadence V (Canada: French title) (dubbed version)

MPAA:

Rated R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

92 min | 95 min (unrated director's cut)

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS | DTS (Dolby 5.1)

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44624) | UK:18 | Australia:MA | Singapore:R21 | Ireland:16 | Canada:18A | New Zealand:R18 | Hong Kong:III | France:-16 | Norway:18 | Argentina:16 | Brazil:18 | Belgium:KNT | Portugal:M/18 | Switzerland:18 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Vaud) | Sweden:15 | South Korea:18 | Japan:R-15 | Australia:R (director's cut) | Australia:R (DVD) | Germany:18 (uncut) (theatrical release) | Netherlands:16 | South Africa:16LV | Ireland:18 (DVD rating) | Philippines:R-18 (MTRCB) | Finland:K-18 | Germany:18 (cut) (DVD release) | Germany:Not Rated (SPIO/JK) (unrated version) (uncut) | Germany:Not Rated (SPIO/JK) (uncut) (DVD release) | Austria:16 | Iceland:18 | Canada:16+ (Quebec)

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Twisted Pictures

Trivia:

Real animal blood was used for the final trap. The director said they wouldn't have used it if they'd known how bad it was going to smell.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the scene when Jigsaw is talking to a tied up Hoffman, the doors in the background of Jigsaw's lair open and close between shots.

Quotes:

Charles: [to Mallick] Playing with matches again?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Fatal Five (2009) (V)

I'm still a fan, but this film is sorely lacking

*Note, while there are no spoilers, this review has been written with the belief that those reading it have either seen the previous Saw installments, or never intend to.* Despite what many tout as a downward trend when looking at the Saw films, I have felt the opposite. While original, I found James Wan's first installment to be at times horrendously acted and weakly scripted despite being modestly successful overall. When Darren Lynn Bousman took the helm for Saw II, III and IV things greatly improved along with the aid of an inflated budget. Following last years Halloween release of Saw IV, which is my favourite in the series, is Saw V which leaves Bousman behind and snaps up a first time director named David Hackl. His inexperience most certainly bares all here, as this bloody sequel is lacking in nearly every vein of its construction and is certainly the worst of the bunch.

But perhaps Hackl is not all to blame. Up until Saw IV there were an abundance of characters to weave and thread through the parallel plot lines of the films. But with the death of Jigsaw in Saw III, and everything all but explained about his past in IV, the character of John Kramer (Tobin Bell) has nothing more to add to the story. The back-story exhibited here adds nothing, except a mostly perfunctory look at the recruitment of Det. Mark Hoffman, as this is really the only thing anyone wants to know. All other aspects of the story are shoehorned in, and only beg to ask more questions. Long gone are all the existing characters, save of course Agent Strahm, and as such, why should we care about what happens to anybody. The superfluous character of Det. Erickson as the newest sucker to hunt Jigsaw's apprentice is introduced, along with a slew of new victims to duke it out for the change to be reborn.

Following the revelation that Det. Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) is in fact Jigsaw's second apprentice, the origins and motivations of Hoffman's conversions are explored. Escaping from Hoffman's ensnarement in Saw IV, Agent Strahm (Scott Patterson) hunts for who he know is an insider in the police force. Meanwhile, Hoffman has trapped 5 people with a hidden common denominator between them in a multi-stage trap, which will put Darwin's survival of the fittest to the ultimate test.

Another glaring folly of this installment is the blandness of the torture contraptions. I by no means have a thirst for blood, but when watching Saw, I at least want ingenuity. After the fantastic imaginings of Saw IV, we are subjected to scenarios such as "find the key before the bomb goes off" and "electrocute someone to save yourself". (Checks watch) There is one fully realized device which may make you think twice about donating blood in the future, as well as a nifty trap featuring a swinging sickle of sorts, but unfortunately this piece of hardware is accompanied by a small twist that has been done already in Saw III.

The Saw series, above most everything else is about the revelatory twist which all fans crave. The tagline of Saw V boasts "You won't believe how it ends" and that, in a backhanded way, is true. Shockingly, there is no big shock in Saw V, no mind-busting twist, only a series of small realizations, which I had deduced on my own long before hand. Perhaps they forgot? Too busy counting their money, maybe? Alas, this film left me wanting, but you can still call me a fan. So here's to hoping that the 6th (and supposedly final) step in this grisly game will pull its predecessor out of the doldrums it has created, for this Saw is certainly much too dull to make a lasting impression.

Read all my reviews at Simon Says Movies http://simonsaysmovies.blogspot.com/