I hope that a possible explanation for the vastly inferior Saw V was due to effort being withheld on that film to more finely hone this installment. The chasm of quality in the middle film between IV and VI is so abrupt from the previous efforts that on some level it almost has to be intentional. Writers Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan are able to effectively right the Saw ship here with a topical story that is not only brutal in its violence (moreso than some of the later sequels) but one that furthers the deepening mythology surrounding Jigsaw (John Kramer), his apprentices, his wife, and the sordid tale between them all.
Taking over directing duties now is former Saw editor Kevin Greutert who helps the writing duo create a tale that is solid not only in its Jigsaw-ery but also on the games side of the story as well. As we meet a new (to us) character William Easton, his fate seems undoubtedly sealed as he is not only a slimy health insurance executive but also a slimy executive with previous ties to Jigsaw as he effectively sealed the brain cancer victim’s fate with the denial of an experimental treatment.
From the opening kill scene featuring corrupt mortgage lenders to the rescission-happy team at the insurance company, I worried that the vague generalities of Jigsaw’s previous participants’ misdeeds would be replaced by heavy-handed Romero-style social commentary on the state of the world as it pertains to the life and death of others. This actually fits nicely with the mythos of the story as John Kramer has had an inoperable brain tumor from the onset of the series and a good number of his victims have been targeted due to their apathy, either of their own lives or of others. As such, the preaching here is not to the audience as much as it is to the characters and the motivation for the games at hand.
Peter Outerbridge playing Easton starts the story as an evil businessman whose primary concern is the bottom-line, regardless of the wake of death and despair that might be left behind. However, through his journey at Jigsaw’s (or Hoffman’s, I get confused by who planned what game) hands, he comes to realize quite painfully that the choice between life and death is not as easy as crunching numbers or evaluating forms. The best trap in the film (and possibly in the whole series) takes six of Easton’s associates and ties them to a spinning merry-go-round of death by shotgun where Easton can choose to save only two. While the guilt of the six is debatable, the emotion in this scene alone as each one pleads for their lives while Easton can only look on as the unworthy are shot is very powerful, not only in its imagery but also in the performances.
While it has been slowing building over the past two films, Kramer’s wife Jill and Hoffman come together to finally realize Jigsaw’s final plan with no loose ends. Meanwhile, after Agent Strahm has gone missing, Hoffman is paired up with Strahm’s partner from IV to find the truth about who is in cahoots with Jigsaw. The primary reason that this is a far superior film than the last (and truthfully one of the best of the series) is not only because of the recalling of previous events and characters in different aspects but that things actually progress instead of staying stagnant. Even the stillborn aspects from the last movie are more fleshed out here, albeit in a largely throwaway line of dialogue, as the five insipid characters from the last movie were responsible for a case that Strahm investigated.
Even with his part monumentally better this time, Hoffman is still a character that resides in the shadow of the real Jigsaw. Costas Mandylor again does an admirable job of portraying a psychopath with a purpose but the character is nowhere as charismatic or impactful as Jigsaw (who plays better than Hoffman in flashbacks … while still deceased). Betsy Russell plays Jill nicely as she recalls the flashbacks of yore as Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) preaches his plan and his way of salvation with confirmation through Amanda (Shawnee Smith) who we learn was a previous drug addict under the care of Jill’s clinic. The main draw though is Outerbridge who may possibly be the most convincing actor in all of the Saw series (no offence to Tobin). Easton’s games are centered around his deplorable business practices and by all accounts should be someone that we root to die as painfully as possible. However, when the end comes and we learn the true meaning behind the game, he has shed his snake-oil salesman act to show a man who has been devastated to experience the horrors he has placed on others. In the entirety of the Saw franchise, I dare anyone to find a character played better with a much more satisfying character arc than his.
Given that this is a Saw movie, most people would shy away due to their preconceived notions of disposable movies featuring nothing but senseless violence. And while that may be true for some of the other sequels with no redeeming qualities, Saw VI is a movie that succeeds in spite of it being included with such a franchise.
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