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11 December 2006
Saw II: Putting blood back into culture.
1 of 2 found this helpful Saw II is a fine example of a sequel that works because it's a sequel. Too many sequels nowadays make ghastly attempts to give more of whatever the first offered, which was presumably good enough to have said sequel. However while some people are too busy thinking up the same movie again, others decide to not only build upon what was established in the first movie but to also use these establishments as a foundation for something special in it's own right and within today's torrents of sequels barely worth the DVDs they're on, it's glad to see hope, that people still know how to make superior sequels, in the form of Saw II.
This movie had a lofty cliff to climb in it's making, as rarely have films like it's predescessor established so much, of what would become trademarks, in the first outing. Indeed the sick traps of the titular Jigsaw Killer are already one of the franchise's selling points, and it was a given fact that they would have to be bigger, better as well as sicker than before to appease the appetites of it's poised fans, who were left wanting more from the surprise success of the first movie. But Saw stood apart from the fastly-growing crouds of what could be referred to as just another bloody horror movie, with it's convoluted plot and characters who are there for more than to just be victims. Saw II would have to grow on both of these as well as the infamous ending plot-twist of the first film. I can't really say much here, as it's a kind of unwritten rule that reviewers aren't allowed to spoil things, however I will say this: You won't be dissappointed.
The basic premise of the movie is that more victims wake up inside one of Jigsaw's iconic traps. One of these is Amanda, the only person to survive another of Jigsaw's 'games'. Needless to say, building on the cult bathroom of the first movie, this Saw now has an entire house loaded with an ironic trap for each victim... and maybe a few more thrown in for good measure. If you're an avid Saw fan, it should be no surprise to learn that this is not the only thing going on in the movie, as 10 minutes into the opening of Saw II, Jigsaw himself is captured and interrogated by the police. However this is all a part of Jigsaw's ultimate plan...
The movie, however, doesn't come without it's faults. The traps, this time around aren't as gory nor as clever as those on the first movie, but this can be forgiven due to them being part of a much more bigger and complex trap. Plus the victims lack personality and relavance of the original victims, and are reduced to mere stereotypes. However these faults can all be forgiven since, by the end of the film, they do more to help than hinder the plot, and are an obvious sign of a movie with it's priorities focused firmly on what makes the movie good.
As I said earlier this movie works more as a sequel than it would as a stand-alone movie and fortunatly there are quite a few referances for fans of the first. Becuase the main plot-twist towards the end of the first Saw was Jigsaw's true identity, it is good to see this movie working on that and giving Jigsaw some much-needed character development, the conversations between Jigsaw and his interregator Matthew, (who plays a much more important part towards the end of the film.) never get boring, which is a good thing as the movie constantly changes back and forth from these conversations back to the 'funhouse' and it's gradually fewer victims...
And yes, there is blood...