Review of Saw IV (2007) by Liam C — 06 Jun 2015

I remember when people were saying that the first 'Saw' film was needlessly complex but, while I don't feel it is needlessly complex as I think the story is excellent and unique, comparing that film to this one, they haven't seen anything yet; 'Saw IV' is an interesting continuation of the series and it is quite uniquely assembled.

Once again the technicals are all great and I actually thought they improved a little as the editing between scenes from the past to the present or changing from location to location where better than ever before, a part where a character gets thrown through a door and then cutting to a different location being a highlight. The cinematography was drabber this time but the green and red were quite vivid; I also like that the text is only on the screen for a little bit when our lead goes from place to place instead of being on screen for a long time just because it is a film, all the films do this but this is a prime example. It was also the shortest film as on Sky Go it said that this film was 88 minutes, but it still manages to tell its story well. The story is very different this time and has more going on than ever before, I expected it to start off with Jeff receiving his game task and then later on expected him to be in the room where those two are, I won't say their names due to spoilers. When we finally see that person's face that is in the room though, I thought it was Jeff at first because of the scar but it had moved. I also like how Hoffman said, 'let me go', instead of,' let us go'. It does seem weird to have anything continue without Kramer around anymore, but they make it work. Characters that had smaller parts return for bigger parts and I am glad they finally found Kerry and it just keeps unravelling. The, 'It's A Trap' tagline made me smile but none of the posters had anything that symbolised a 'IV' shape, some of the posters, like this one, seem to showcase what will become the most popular trap used, they don't all do this, however. This poster in particular might imply something, but it plays out much different when you see the film.

The film explains a lot like usual but the ending was a little much to take in at first and it sort of seems like the writers have made it really hard for themselves. 'Saw II' had to be told the way it was because it was done to trick the characters as well as us but this feels like it was told the way it was just because it was meant to trick us, that might sound odd but it'll make sense when you see it, it still works though. However, even the person that was in Amanda's trap room from the first film appears in this! But of course he was going to run through the door because of his emotions at that time, and how exactly is him wanting to save everyone a bad thing? But I understand what was going on. I don't really like the exit of one character, while it is great to see that actor back one more time, we have been following his story for 3 films at this point and that fact that he exited that way disappointed me a little. Despite not liking the violence, Oren Koules does show up in this film in a role! But we hear John swear and I don't think we've seen that before and I remember the wax part from the previous film and it all works together, another theory that all these films were planned. It was obvious that guy that went to get his coat was going to do something, as well as having an attempted jump scare with him but the way that scene ended was shocking. And hey they have an 'iRobot'!

I didn't really understand why Perez was randomly attacked as that didn't seem to make sense but it is actually explained in the next film. I also like how the TV's turn on at exactly the point they need to but there is no point complaining about that at this point. The theme is used at the start but it is only used once again at the end and they say 'game over' at the end of this once more, unlike the last film but it wouldn't have really fit, even if I did expect Hoffman to say it as well, and it is still great to see this amount of effort being put into this series! But, now more than ever, make sure to watch the series from the start, this isn't like the generic horror series where the numbers increase and the stories don't relate. It might seem odd that Whannell and Wan are only executive producers now, but the series is in good hands.