Condescension Sawx! And Give Tobin Bell an Oscar Nom Already!

Luke Y. Thompson Reviews the new SAW X 4K Disc.

When those first Saw movies came out, the stigma around them wasn't just that critics didn't like them; it was that they were actually morally evil celebrations of torture, and compared to pornography in a manner that implied fans of the movies were aroused by suffering. — Luke Y. Thompson

(Ed — In this review of Saw X, Luke Y. Thompson talks about a sea change in how critics view the horror genre and how these films were once viewed as an affront to good taste. Geekerati did an episode in 2007, linked below, discussing David Edelstein’s creation of the term “torture porn,” a example of the moral stigma critics applied to films like SAW.)

Every year, as the Los Angeles Film Critics Association prepares to vote, members submit suggestions (anonymously) into a big document, for ease of voting later. Odds are nothing not in that document will win, though it's possible. And I will never forget one year, when a particularly smarmy colleague said to me, 'Yeah, when I saw Patrick Stewart in there for Logan, I knew that had to be you.” Had to be me, why? Because it isn't self-evident that Patrick Stewart playing a man with dementia is great at it? Oh, it's because I'm “the guy” who dares champion performances in movies based on comics. I've been dealing with this level of condescension and typecasting for years, though to be fair, I think I may have got my first job based on that attitude in reverse, when I answered an ad at New Times that pointedly wanted a young critic who didn't reject action and genre films out of hand.

So I was heartened this year when somebody else submitted Tobin Bell's name for Saw X. I would have supported him for Saw II and Saw III had there been a hope in hell, but a quick reminder: when those first Saw movies came out, the stigma around them wasn't just that critics didn't like them; it was that they were actually morally evil celebrations of torture, and compared to pornography in a manner that implied fans of the movies were aroused by suffering. Fans of the movies would sometimes fire back that their twisted morality would “make you think,” often with equally unsophisticated arguments.

Yet Bell's performance as the central Jigsaw Killer, John Kramer, has always been written and performed with more nuance than that. He sees himself as morally superior, but he isn't. His twisted games and traps don't actually help anyone – the survivors nearly always die later, either after being re-tested or killed by an apprentice. On his deathbed, he gives his favorite apprentice Amanda (Shawnee Smith) one final test, hoping she'll pass it and knowing she probably won't; when she fails, he dies knowing his biggest “success” story was bunk. He's a tragic figure who reaps what he sows, only occasionally taking out people who, at least in horror movie terms, deserve it. In this one, the tables turn, as he makes a rare lapse in judgment and falls for a medical scam, putting him in conflict with a doctor almost as smart and ruthless as he is, with fewer principles.

As for his violent death traps, director/editor Kevin Greutert, on the Saw X 4K commentary track, reveals an inspiration that's been hiding in plain sight all this time. They're the Batman and Robin cliffhangers – let's face it, you always kinda hoped one of those would actually do as intended -- but without victims as smart as Batman, they usually end up working. That the final one in Saw X also ropes in a kid sidekick of sorts, and that the movie's mid credits sequence ends with a camera spin just like the 1966 show's transitions, is meant to make it perfectly clear.

In my original review, I wrote that Saw X feels like a swan song for the 82 year-old Bell, who can't keep doing these much longer, and that it's as if he got the leeway in this one to do everything he ever wanted to do with the character but hadn't been able to before. The included deleted scenes bear that out, giving him even more to play. From emotional moments with Amanda to villain-offs with new foe Synnøve Macody Lund to a 25-minute master featuring improvised monologues, these extra scenes were correctly taken out to keep the movie two hours long – and they don't add crucial plot information – but equally correctly put on the disc, to display everything Bell had to give.

That's far from all that the disc has to offer. A behind-the-scenes documentary split into chapters goes in depth with composer Charlie Clouser, most of the actors, writers, producers, effects people, cinematographer, et al., and covers the basics. Beyond that, Greutert pulls a John Madden in a section called Drawing Inspiration, where he comments over certain scenes while using a light pen to highlight key elements and “call the play,” in a manner of speaking. We get makeup tests of every trap, to show exactly how they were done. And then the commentary, with Greutert, cinematographer Nick Matthews,  and production designer Anthony Stanley, which focuses mainly on the photography, and how hard it was to complete the film, given low-budget challenges and the crew getting Covid. Nobody ever mentions whether they even thought about trying to make Bell and Smith look 20 years younger for continuity's sake. Any such thoughts were obviously for naught, but I would like to have heard that discussion.

All told, though, you get a great tutorial on how this movie got made, and how a person would make a similar one. All on the 4K disc itself, too, though a Blu-ray is included as well. As for the movie, don't expect a whole new level of clarity, since it wasn't shot like that. A pearlescent filter gives the lights their own halo effect, and literal Vaseline on the lens occasionally portrays hazy states of mind and vision. That, plus Greutert's tight, effects-concealing cuts and whip pans, make sure that what you see most are the performances and the trap designs. Saw X will never win any non-genre acting awards, but that is not for lack of trying – we've come a long way since Leigh Whannell and Cary Elwes hammed it up in a bathroom.

As of now, only three other Saw movies exist on 4K – Saw, Jigsaw, and Spiral. The first one features extreme color correction that loses the filter effect, and the others aren't incentive enough to purchase a full set for. Maybe this could beat Friday and Elm Street to 4K box set status, but be warned that the one that claims to be right now only has three of them in 4K. (Also, Saw VII was shot in digital 2K, so maybe that's not a huge deal.)

Saw in general never knows when to quit – it would be a perfect trilogy had it ended at III, but 6 movies later, we finally have another really good one, that in turn would make a great finale...so of course they won't stop now. (VI, which features an aside about a Norwegian doctor who finally shows up in X, is also decent.) If completionism isn't a medical condition for you, I suggest merely buying the ones you like.

I also suggest giving Bell an Oscar nomination, but the uphill battle is what it is. Try getting anyone who's never seen a Saw movie by choice to watch one. If Jigsaw put me in a trap with that as my escape route, I would fail badly.

For the rest of y'all, Saw X, now out on digital sans extras, comes out on 4K and Blu-ray Nov. 21.