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Home › Culture & Entertainment › Movies › The Saw horror franchise (2004-2010): Saw I, II, III, IV, V, VI, and VII

The Saw horror franchise (2004-2010): Saw I, II, III, IV, V, VI, and VII

Started by cosmiclynx57 · · 👁 9 views · 40 replies

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Participants cosmiclynx57Melissa Hughes28Rachel Cooper3Noah Kim38redmarlin27Patrick MartinMaria James94Tyler Clark86Larry Walker24David RamosAndrew Roberts3Lawrence Booth2William King6wiredraven82David Murphy11Joshua Garcia5dustycanyon5Edward Price6Jack Morgan2Gregory Brown94Morgan Brown4analogbear14Joshua Kernhiddenowl20 …
cosmiclynx57 cosmiclynx57 RegularOP
320 messages
joined Mar 2019
#1 ·
The Saw Horror Franchise

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Saw 2004-2010

. (Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7)

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If you ask me, this is easily one of the best horror franchises out there. Seriously, if you’re someone who lives for high tension, pure adrenaline, twisted puzzles, and those gut-wrenching horror elements,
you absolutely have to check this series out. It spans seven intense installments.

The whole Saw series follows Jigsaw, a serial killer who traps his victims in elaborate, deadly games where they have to fight for their very lives just to see another sunrise.
He doesn't just pick people at random, though—he actually targets individuals who have messed up their lives in significant ways.
The movies carry some heavy messages too, really forcing us to look at the absolute extremes of what a human being is willing to do just to survive.

And of course, the movies are packed with endless plot twists, wild turns, and deep mysteries...
To actually wrap your head around what's happening, you really need to watch them all in order starting from the first one,
because otherwise, you're going to be totally lost!

* Heads up! Possible minor spoilers ahead! Read the rest with caution if you haven't seen the full Saw series yet. *

Saw (2004)

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Saw (originally titled Saw) is an American thriller/horror film released in 2004.
It was directed by James Wan, who also wrote the script alongside Leigh Whannell.
Can you believe they filmed the entire first movie in just 18 days?
The film even landed at #3 on Bravo's list of most terrifying movie moments.

Saw II (2005)

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Saw II is the 2005 horror sequel that picks up right after the events of the 2004 original.

The story shifts back to Jigsaw, the serial killer who has finally been caught.
But instead of just letting him go, he pulls the lead detective into a psychological game, while simultaneously
running a separate game involving eight other people, including the detective's own son.
The movie also does a much better job of fleshing out Jigsaw's backstory
and explaining why he became a killer in the first place (which gets even more detail in Saw IV).

Saw III (2006)

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This one focuses on the dying antagonist of the series, Jigsaw, and his unstable apprentice, Amanda,
who is helping him carry out his final tests.
The film also throws in even more pieces of the puzzle regarding Jigsaw's past.

Here's a wild bit of trivia: during its theatrical run in the US, three people actually passed out in theaters,
which ended up requiring emergency medical assistance!

Saw IV (2007)

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The American premiere continued the tradition where the American premiere of a film
It's set on the first Thursday before Witches' Night.

The whole movie basically picks up where we left off with that serial killer Jigsaw, who’s totally obsessed with forcing his victims to actually appreciate the value of life.
Even though Jigsaw himself was taken out in the last installment, this flick really shows off his insane ability to manipulate things from beyond the grave
by tricking people into carrying on his twisted legacy.

Saw V (2008)

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The fifth entry in the Saw series throws some massive curveballs at you, tying up loose ends and mysteries from the earlier movies while dropping a bunch of brand-new puzzles on our heads.
So, Jigsaw is dead, right? Well, apparently someone else is more than happy to pick up right where he left off.
According to Jigsaw's philosophy, everyone should have had a fair shot at surviving, but this new successor to Jigsaw isn't playing by those rules—he's way more immoral and builds
traps that basically guarantee the first victim won't make it, all while getting his revenge for stuff that went down in the past.

Saw VI (2009)

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Saw VI is just another chapter in this super popular horror franchise.
It actually wraps up the second trilogy, which focuses heavily on the aftermath
of everything Jigsaw started and the chaos caused by his successor, Mark Hoffman.
In this one, Hoffman sets up a nasty new trap for an insurance company executive named William Easton,
while the FBI is busy hunting down Peter Strauss, the last guy suspected of being an accomplice to Jigsaw.

Saw: The Final Chapter (2010)

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The Last Stand, the Legends...
From the very start, you've been watching others suffer through these tests. Now, it's finally your turn to play the game.

Do you really think you can survive until the very end?

As this brutal battle over Jigsaw's terrifying legacy heats up, a group of people who actually managed to survive his games starts to band together.
They go looking for help from a self-help guru who also happens to be a survivor named Bobby Dagen, but it turns out Bobby's own dark secrets might just
open the door to a whole new wave of terror.

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Melissa Hughes28 Melissa Hughes28 Newcomer
1 message
joined Apr 2013
#2 ·
The first one is honestly incredible
the rest of them? I don't know... they're just okay, I guess..
Rachel Cooper3 Rachel Cooper3 Active Member
167 messages
joined May 2014
#3 ·
The first one is convincingly the best.
--all in all, I think the entire series is excellent because every sequel brings something new to the table while keeping the narrative moving forward.
Noah Kim38 Noah Kim38 Newcomer
3 messages
joined Jan 2012
#4 ·
Does this latest one actually come out in a standard 2D version?
redmarlin27 redmarlin27 Member
35 messages
joined Dec 2010
#5 ·
The first one’s my favorite—it’s a killer thriller.

The sequels are just pure torture, but hey, they're watchable enough.
Patrick Martin Patrick Martin Regular
702 messages
joined Aug 2015
#6 ·
Man, you're telling me. That whole series is just pure, unadulterated Saw nightmare fuel. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5... how many entries does that thing even have now?
Maria James94 Maria James94 Member
39 messages
joined May 2009
#7 ·
Rachel Cooper3 said:The first one is convincingly the best.
--all in all, I think the entire series is excellent because every sequel brings something new to the table while keeping the narrative moving forward.

Man, I can still picture the ending of that first movie perfectly. It was killer. 🙂
Tyler Clark86 Tyler Clark86 Active Member
77 messages
joined Dec 2012
#8 ·
Honestly, this is one of my absolute favorite franchises. I’ve always been Team Original—it feels like everyone else is too. 😁
Larry Walker24 Larry Walker24 Veteran
1K messages
joined Jun 2022
#9 ·
1. It's fine

The rest was just mindless slaughter for the sake of it
David Ramos David Ramos Newcomer
2 messages
joined Jan 2013
#10 ·
The poll feels somewhat pointless 🙂
1. stands head and shoulders above the rest
Andrew Roberts3 Andrew Roberts3 Active Member
51 messages
joined Aug 2010
#11 ·
It’s just a textbook example of how you take an incredible premise—and let’s be real, that first movie was a genuine masterpiece of horror—and completely butcher it because everyone involved got blinded by a paycheck. They keep cranking up the complexity until the plot is such a convoluted mess that nobody can even follow the logic anymore... it's just a series of increasingly ridiculous torture devices set against a backdrop of a story that lost its way long ago. I mean, fine, we still have the original to fall back on, but as for the sequels? I’m basically just watching them out of pure habit at this point.
Lawrence Booth2 Lawrence Booth2 Regular
297 messages
joined Sep 2022
#12 ·
I watched the first one
it was alright, I guess
but I think I called it quits after the third installment
William King6 William King6 Newcomer
1 message
joined Apr 2013
#13 ·
The first one is definitely the best by a mile.
And honestly, I’m surprised the sixth one holds up—it’s got plenty of solid carnage, some actually decent moral dilemmas, and a killer ending.
As for the rest? God help us, they're a total mess.
cosmiclynx57 cosmiclynx57 RegularOP
320 messages
joined Mar 2019
#14 ·
Obviously, SAW1 is my absolute favorite—I mean, I think everyone feels the same way, right? Because honestly, looking at the list, it seems like nobody is even voting for any other sequel over the original one yet.

If you ask me, they really should have just stuck to a trilogy, because the way they've stretched this out is just ridiculous... but hey, if you look at the big picture, the series is still pretty solid.
wiredraven82 wiredraven82 Active Member
146 messages
joined Mar 2014
#15 ·
Look, the first one was genuinely solid—it actually worked. But this second installment? It’s got that classic "just okay" syndrome, which is unfortunately way too common in horror sequels, if not in the genre as a whole.
cosmiclynx57 cosmiclynx57 RegularOP
320 messages
joined Mar 2019
#16 ·
wiredraven82 said:Look, the first one was genuinely solid—it actually worked. But this second installment? It’s got that classic "just okay" syndrome, which is unfortunately way too common in horror sequels, if not in the genre as a whole.

Man, if you’re asking me which one was the absolute bottom of the barrel, I honestly don't even know where to start because there are so many ways a movie can totally miss the mark! But if I really had to pick a winner for the worst of the bunch, I'd have to say it's definitely one of those later sequels that just felt like they were running on fumes, you know? Like, once you get past that initial shock and the genius of the original, everything starts feeling so repetitive and forced. Which one do you think hit the lowest note?

David Ramos said:The poll feels somewhat pointless 🙂
1. stands head and shoulders above the rest

So, that's where things stand for now, but the second part has already snagged a vote, hasn't it? It really just comes down to personal taste at this point, right? I'm sure there are plenty of other people out there who might actually prefer one over the other, they just haven't jumped in to cast their votes yet!
David Murphy11 David Murphy11 Newcomer
9 messages
joined May 2012
#17 ·
I have no idea who handled the distribution for the first SAW installment here in the US, but there was a massive spoiler printed right on the back of the cover 🙂
Consequently, I spent most of the movie wondering when the guy in the orange jumpsuit was actually going to get up off the floor
redmarlin27 redmarlin27 Member
35 messages
joined Dec 2010
#18 ·
Part 5 is easily the most brutal entry in the whole franchise. At least for me.

That one scene where they used the saw on the victims totally caught me off guard, and man, that agent’s death at the end? Brutal.😲

Watching those scenes was genuinely nauseating. Not even a huge fan would be able to force me to sit through that movie again.
Joshua Garcia5 Joshua Garcia5 Member
17 messages
joined Jul 2012
#19 ·
I watched the first three films purely for the narrative; everything was so perfectly woven together. I’ve never actually classified Saw as a horror movie per se, but I am definitely a huge fan.

It’s just that after the third installment, I stopped following the actual plot (though I've seen every sequel at least twice, and I still have gaps in my knowledge) and started watching more for the fresh concepts behind the traps and torture scenarios.😁

I remember watching the first one and thinking aloud how much I wouldn't want to cross paths with the person capable of designing those traps. By the end of the series, I found myself mentally brainstorming my own ideas.🤣

all in all, it’s an excellent series. The story might have been perfect if it had wrapped up with the third film, but hey—I don't regret watching the others. Personally, the third and fifth ones are my favorites.
dustycanyon5 dustycanyon5 Member
49 messages
joined May 2017
#20 ·
The absolute king of horror franchises! 👍

But am I crazy, or is the third one actually the best part of the whole series? 🤷

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