I was never a fan of the Saw movies, but I always watch them out of morbid curiosity. They were never memorable story-wise, but we remember the names for every Jigsaw trap. The games are so detailed and well-thought-out that I begin to wonder if killers like Jigsaw exist out there in real life, that’s what makes these films so terrifying. Much like Final Destination films, we feel obligated to watch these kinds of movies, mainly because we’d like to imagine how we’d evade the horrifying situations the unlucky characters go through.
How to Stream or Download Saw V
You can stream it or you can download the film from a digital store of your choice, To start – click on the Download button at the end of the review. Check out also our review of the previous films from the series: Saw, Saw II, Saw III, and Saw IV.
The Movie Review
Jigsaw’s legacy continues to live on, even after his death. The story begins with its first victim – Seth, a serial killer who just got out of prison. Of course, no one ever wins a Jigsaw puzzle. There is one exception – Detective Mark Hoffman, who is hailed as a hero after escaping one of his games and rescuing a young girl.
Special Agent Peter Strahm is skeptical of him, however, after a badly injured Agent Lindsay Perez mentions Hoffman’s name. While Agent Strahm investigates Detective Hoffman’s history, Jigsaw subjects five more victims to a series of brutal tests.
Darren Lynn Bousman says goodbye to the franchise after directing Saw IV. He’s replaced by David Hackl, who worked on the previous Saw films as a production designer. Due to his lack of filmmaking experience, he inevitably takes the franchise in a bad direction. It’s mainly due to his attempts at being artistic, such as adding fast-forwarding sequences.
They’re outright lazy and annoying, giving the film a cheaper look. Everything else is the same, while acting as executive producers, original creators James Wan and Leigh Whannell have given way to fresh blood in the writing/directing departments.
The same pulsating and suspenseful music by Charlie Clouser. The same bleak locations are shrouded in darkness. The same irritated victims who are too impatient to consider things through.
Although backstories are revealed, this time regarding how Hoffman became a piece of Jigsaw’s puzzle, the characters don’t appear as fleshed out. Even though Saw fans will be pleased to see Jigsaw, the flashback scenes with Hoffman don’t add much to the story because his character remains uninteresting and unconvincing.
The new victims and their backstories are predictable from the beginning, and none of their personalities are given any concern by the filmmakers, and they have some of the worst lines.
Of course, the strongest point of the Saw movies is its formula – victims are trapped in an abandoned building, and figure out how to fight their way out. But with the franchise going on its fifth sequel, there’s gotta be something new right? I think the writers were too focused on the detective that they forgot about the suspense factor.
There’s no mystery as to who gets killed, and the point of Jigsaw’s games is that there’s always a chance of winning. But in this sequel, we can tell who exactly dies based on their personality, and it just ends up being straight-up torture porn. Overall, the three stories that happen end up clashing against each other, and the pieces never fit.
The Bottom Line
In conclusion, Saw V may be the worst out of its predecessors. You won’t be able to enjoy this if you haven’t seen the first Saw movies. I must say, it’s ambitious.
It takes a LOT of guts to kill its biggest villain, Jigsaw. Yet, we still fear if he’s alive, even when he’s clearly dead in the morgue. But the movie should’ve died with him, because there’s nothing else to anticipate in the next movies. There’s really no hero, or a villain anymore.
