Directed by Kevin Greutert. Starring Tobin Bell ,Costas Mandylor, Shawnee Smith, Betsy Russell, Peter Outerbridge, Larissa Gomes. USA, 2009, 88 minutes.

Out on DVD & Blu-ray on 8th March 2010. RRP: £9.99. BUY NOW

In the sixth instalment of the ever popular ‘Saw’ franchise we find the FBI is closing in on Detective Hoffman after Special Agent Strahm died (at the end of ‘Saw V’). Jigsaw has set yet another game into motion using his pawns and we come closer to finding out the truth behind his master plan.

There are two kinds of ‘Saw’ fans. Those who think the original ‘Saw’ was awesome but despise each sequel more and more, and those who get excited each Halloween for the next gory instalment in this modern horror series. I personally find each film to be very enjoyable and they all have merits both as part of the series and as stand-alone films. Even though ‘Saw VI’ is my least favourite it still has some great moments.

The film opens with a particularly nasty trap (which we have come to expect) that sets a gruesome tone for this new film. Unfortunately the film seems to fall flat after this very short sequence. It attempts to delve deep into the past and tries to create an interesting story that will fit in with the previous ones. There are far too many flashbacks here for my liking. At times it almost seems like a copycat ‘Saw’ movie. This may be partly due to the decision of bringing Greutert (editor of the previous films) in to direct. Probably the films first mistake, and also possibly a potential problem for ‘Saw VII’, which he is also in charge of. We will see…

For a film with such a short running time it takes far too long to get going and spends the majority of its time focusing on unnecessary story development and character arcs, and throwing far too many red herrings and dramatic reveals at the audience. As I mentioned there are too many flashbacks and the film becomes confusing and switches focus too often. Let’s face it, those who are still watching ‘Saw’ films all these years after the first one are mostly watching to see some graphic gore and violence, which strangely there is very little of in this film (unless I am that desensitised now). There is too much plot and too little horror for a film like this. After the opening scene we are left waiting nearly 30 minutes before there is any real horror on the screen. Surely that is no way to treat a horror fan?

On the upside the film is very slick and nicely shot and edited, especially with the MTV style visuals. We have come to expect this style from the series as it creates a sense of claustrophobia and tension. It is a great technique to use (even if it is a little underused here).

The colour schemes look really good and help distinguish timelines, locations and traps. However there were a few scenes which were overblown with colour and didn’t stand up too well for at home viewing, also the blood seems a little too bright and red for me (these issues show up painfully in the blu-ray version).

Tobin Bell is perfect once again with his portrayal of Jigsaw, a character which we feel more and more sympathy with each film. He brings such humanity to a horrible and disturbing character and seeing his flashback scenes makes you wonder if maybe he is doing the right thing after all. Costas Mandylor is also great to watch as he lumbers about, muttering the odd line of dialogue and looking menacing. The script doesn’t really bring out the best of his character or acting skills this time around though unfortunately. The other characters are so flat and just seem like cannon fodder really and we aren’t made to care enough about them, maybe this was a deliberate attempt to switch our compassion from the victims to jigsaw, if so it was perhaps too subtle here.

The score is adequate and creates a certain sense of horror and sadness. I suppose there isn’t really much that can be done with a score when you get this far into a series. The key themes are used and the sound of the film does help the narrative flow but it isn’t anything to write home about.

The traps in the film are not nearly as graphic or terrifying as we have seen in the other films. They seem more psychological which is very interesting, but I am not sure it works as it plays with audience expectations too much and will perhaps leave them feeling short changed. The film however does ramp up the action and tension in the last twenty minutes so its well worth sticking around for the duration. The merry-go round trap is a very cool scene and actually builds some fear and is more reminiscent of the earlier films. Unfortunately it comes a bit too late and is then disjointed by the following scenes of narrative drama.

If, like me, you are a fan of the series then it’s definitely worth checking out, if you gave up after ‘Saw’ or even ‘Saw II’ then you are probably best leaving this one alone. If you do watch then stay tuned at the end of the credits for a small but interesting little scene.

The Blu-Ray contains a couple of extras not found on the DVD, but both releases have enough to keep the fans happy. There are several featurettes (which are quite interesting) two commentaries and a series of music videos. Should be enough to keep you busy for a while after the film has ended.

By Russell Gomm.

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