For almost twenty years horror fans have had the pleasure of watching James Wan's (Aquaman) and Leigh Whannell's (Insidious) Saw film franchise lay the foundation for a gruesome and gory series. Over those years the cast and plots have gone through several changes but as Saw hits its tenth film this year, it heads back to its roots with John Kramer (Tobin Bell; Mississippi Burning) once again creating "traps" that require his victims to make a horrible choice. Of course, you might be wondering how John Kramer is once again Jigsaw as he died in the third installment but that answer comes in the form of a flashback and all at once we realize Saw X includes the events that occurred in the second movie.
Having been diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor, Kramer has little time left - or so he thinks. When one of his fellow support group attendees suddenly appears healthy again, he explains to Kramer that he discovered an experimental treatment outside the US and gives Kramer the information. After inquiring about the treatment, Kramer finds himself in Mexico undergoing brain surgery and trying a new regiment of drugs.
Feeling hopeful, Kramer deduces the treatment's center location and returns only to discover that everything is gone and that the surgery was a fake, intended to steal his savings. Once verifying that the tumor is still in his brain, Kramer with the help of an accomplice, captures those involved in the scam and gives them a choice, in his usual John Kramer fashion, to live or die.
With the 4K disc being presented in Dolby Vision, one can only imagine how gross and bloody the visuals are such as when one victim is required to saw off her own leg and suck out the bone marrow so has to stop the machine that is going to behead her. With an overall muted color palette and with much of the film taking place in an abandoned warehouse, the feeling throughout the movie is one of despair.
The visuals are enhanced (and not in a good way) by the Dolby Atmos audio. While it is one thing to watch blood drip as skin is torn apart by a flexible, metal saw that eventually cuts through the bone. It is something entirely different to HEAR said saw cutting the flesh and bone as the victims screams from the overwhelming sense of pain. While the center speaker showcases the dialogue from the front, the layered ambient sounds and score by Charlie Clouser are part of what makes Saw X so scary.
The package comes with the 4K disc, Blu-ray Disc, and Vudu digital download. There is also an abundance of extras, which include audio Commentary with Director-Editor Kevin Greutert, Cinematographer Nick Matthews, and Production Designer Anthony Stabley, Reawakening, Drawing Inspiration: Illustrated Scene Breakdowns with Director-Editor Kevin Greutert, Make-Up Department Trap Tests, Deleted Scenes, and Theatrical Trailer. They are the perfect example of supplemental material done right. With 188 minutes of making of/behind-the-scenes footage plus deleted scenes and make-up tests, it is one of the most comprehensive collections of extras I have seen in the last several years.
There has always been something warped and demented about these movies but more recently they seemed to have forgotten their origins. Saw #9, entitled Spiral, was so vastly different from from the original Saw movie that it didn't seem to fit at all and was therefore rather disappointing and disjointed from the rest of the series. With Saw X going back in time and telling the story of how Kramer got revenge on those who preyed on the weak before he died, the movie reaffirms what audiences have come to love from the franchise.
Saw X is probably one of the best Saw films in over ten years and has rejuvenated and refreshed the series as a whole.
Grade: A-
