Love it or hate it, Saw made a massive impact on horror cinema twenty years ago. It put director James Wan on the map, made over one hundred times its budget and spawned a long-lived franchise along with a slew of misguided imitations. But is Saw still as sharp as it was in 2004, or have its blades dulled with time? Let’s find out:

Short synopsis:

Two strangers wake up in a serial killer’s dungeon/high-end truck stop bathroom and must play his game in order to escape with their lives.

Initial Thoughts

My first viewing of Saw messed me up in the best way a horror movie should, if that makes sense. It kept me thinking about it – and scared of it – for a good while after, and is one of the few movies that has cost me a good night’s sleep. I’ve loved it since then, but it had been quite a long while since I last saw it.

What’s as good as I remember?

• Watching people play Jigsaw’s games is still harrowing. The camera work gives everything a tight, claustrophobic feel to it and the unique, dark atmosphere heightens the fear even further. In short: when Saw wants to be scary, it’s scary.
• The film’s leads, Leigh Whannell (who also wrote the screenplay for Saw and directed the awesome Invisible Man remake) and Cary Elwes are great in their roles. The confusion and terror their characters experience is palpable and I felt plenty of anxiety watching them struggle to survive this time around.
• The pacing is excellent too. It never feels sluggish and I was constantly engaged throughout Saw’s runtime.

What’s worse than I remember?

• Some of the dialogue outside the torture chambers – especially in the flashbacks – leaves a lot to be desired.
• The chemistry between some of the supporting cast members is pretty weak.
• There are a couple of deaths that I’m pretty sure were supposed to be more impactful than they were.

Anything better than I remember?

• The reverse bear trap sequence is legitimately terrifying, and probably one of my favorite scenes in any horror movie.
• “Hello Zepp,” is one of the greatest pieces of music from any horror movie. I get goosebumps every time I hear it. I’d even put it in the ballpark of “Tubular Bells” and John Carpenter’s original Halloween theme.

My thoughts overall:

Rewatching Saw makes it easy to see why James Wan has had such a prominent filmmaking career in the past fifteen years. The way it’s shot heightens the intensity of the game rooms, the pacing is fantastic, and while the dialogue is fairly clunky it’s still clear that there was talent behind the camera, if a little rough around the edges. Saw isn’t the borderline masterpiece I remember it as, but it’s still a great film that really works when it needs to, and was certainly worth watching again. No matter how it’s changed since, the Saw series definitely started on the… right foot.