It's questionable who suffers more in this torture porn sequel - the victims or the audience. But glib lines aside, there is no point in continuing the franchise unless the filmmakers can up the ante in the gruesome/anguish/torture stakes
Saw V (2008)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:62
Fresh:9
Rotten:53
Average Rating:3/10
Consensus: If its plot were as interesting as its torture devices, or its violence less painful than its performances, perhaps Saw V might not feel like it was running on fumes.
Rated: R [See Full Rating] for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, language and brief nudity.
Runtime: 1 hr 32 mins
Genre: Horror/Suspense
Theatrical Release:Oct 24, 2008 Wide
Box Office: $56,729,973
Synopsis: Continuing on with its story despite the death of namesake killer Jigsaw in the third installment, SAW V concerns itself with detailing who will carry on with his bloody work. Director David Hackl,... Continuing on with its story despite the death of namesake killer Jigsaw in the third installment, SAW V concerns itself with detailing who will carry on with his bloody work. Director David Hackl, the production designer on the previous three films, retains their familiar charnel house look. Though there are fewer grisly death sequences, faithful viewers will enjoy the creative plot twists. The film opens with a man strapped to a table above a pendulum. As the sharp blade begins swinging over his stomach, he has only a minute to stop it by inserting his hands into a device that will crush them. When the machine malfunctions, it's clear that it wasn't the work of the meticulous Jigsaw. Meanwhile, FBI Agent Strahm (Scott Patterson) continues the investigation he began in the previous film, only to wake up to find himself wearing a glass helmet filled with water. With a minimum of self-mutilation, he escapes and continues his investigation with the hunch that Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) is somehow involved in the new rash of killings. Before long, a new group of strangers wakes up in Jigsaw's lair to face a series of brutal tests, and Jigsaw's ex-wife, Jill, is given a mysterious box at the execution of his will. An enormously popular and critic-proof series, SAW gives its fans what they want--creatively executed blood and guts. The fifth installment in as many years, SAW V is more subdued in that department, but the sequences it does contain deliver the goods. Several lengthy flashbacks also allow Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) to make a few appearances. While SAW V isn't the place for beginners to start, those who have stuck with the story this far will find it a fitting entry, happy that SAW VI is just around the bend. [More]
Starring: Tobin Bell, Costas Mandylor, Scott Patterson, Betsy Russell
Starring: Tobin Bell, Costas Mandylor, Scott Patterson, Betsy Russell, Mark Rolston, Carlo Rota, Julie Benz, Greg Bryk, Laura Gordon, Meagan Good
Director: David Hackl
Director: David Hackl
Screenwriter: Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan
Producer: Mark Berg, Oren Koules
Composer: Charlie Clouser
Studio: Lions Gate Films
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Reviews for Saw V
Surprisingly, the FIFTH installment of the series has a nice flow to it and is still able to dish out newly designed horrific torture scenes.
This is unmistakably one of the worst horror films of the year. It's the last dying gasp of a series that was already past its expiration date.
Like High School Musical 3, which is opening against this film, Saw V is made for the fans.
... heads roll and nail bomb shrapnel turns a headstrong 'survivor' into a pile of pink human brisket with pants. Does this sound like entertainment to you?
About the only thing that really interested me about Saw V was the fact that it shares this odd parallel relationship to the fifth installment of Friday the 13th.
The periodic traps set for five new victims, all linked by a rotten real-estate deal, are neither as terrifying nor as yucky as in the earlier films. The only real horror in these scenes, in fact, is the jaw-droppingly bad acting on display.
The first three Saws were at least plausible within the grotesque terms of the premise. The fourth was ridiculous and this, the fifth, is laughable.
The Saw movies have a convoluted storyline for the same reason Playboy has articles. It gives the consumer an easy excuse.
Thank goodness Lionsgate made another Saw film! Otherwise, how would we as a country get to feel good about ourselves while watching humans suffer through prolonged torture, degradation and death?
Jigsaw was put out of his misery two movies ago. Lionsgate might want to consider doing this misbegotten series the same favor.
I predict in Saw VI that Jigsaw will be punishing people for tilting pinball machines, loving their children too much, and driving in the carpool lane unaccompanied.
Everything after its gory "pit-and-the-pendulum" opening scare sequence is downhill in the fifth and potentially last installment in a horror franchise that has run completely out of steam.
...hardcore fans of Jigsaw's exploits will probably find something here worth embracing.
If you liked the previous four movies, there's little reason why you won't find at least a few things to enjoy in this one, but it's definitely getting to the point where it's dubious whether they can keep it going much longer...
A cut above its pretentious predecessors; the graphic set-pieces -- including an opening inspired by Poe's 'The Pit and the Pendulum' -- deliver the gory goods.
The ad campaign for Saw V assures the viewer, 'You won't believe how it ends.' This is true, because you won't believe it could possibly be this lame.
Jigsaw has seen better days. That's saying a lot, considering he was last spotted on a mortuary slab, his rotting flesh a sickly shade of gray as a medical examiner nonchalantly sliced open his stomach.
Latest News for Saw V
October 21, 2009:
See Saw with Alex, Day 5: Saw V
There was no sense of accomplishment after watching Saw V, that little satisfaction of having finished a movie that follows you for the rest of the day. Right now, it just feels... More...
January 19, 2009:
RT on DVD: Max Payne, Saw V, King Kong on Blu-ray
Mark Wahlberg brings maximum pain to DVD this week in the critically-punished Max Payne, although new horror titles Saw V and Repo! The Genetic Opera didn't fare much better on... More...
October 27, 2008:
Saw Becomes Most Lucrative Horror Franchise ![]()
Thanks to its $30 million weekend gross, "Saw V" has officially made "Saw" the most lucrative horror franchise in movie history. More...
October 23, 2008:
Box Office Guru Preview: Kids to Flood Multiplexes for Senior Year
Rarely does Hollywood release two films on the same day that are as opposite in every way as this Friday's pair of new openers. Disney promotes a hit TV franchise to the big... More...
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| 83% 83% | Harry Potter and the H… |
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