Saw II Review Country : USA Year: 2005 Genre: Horror Format: Theater Running Time: tbc Distributor: Lion's Gate Films The original was a massive hit among horror fans and general movie fans alike. With imaginative story telling and great direction. The sequel keeps the standards very high indeed... Credits Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman. Written by Darren Lynn Bousman and Leigh Whannell. Starring Tobin Bell, Lyriq Bent, Tim Burd, John Fallon and Franky G. Jigsaw is back, and oh yes... there will be blood... and LOTS of it! Gorehounds rejoice, the second best movie of the year (next to The Devils Rejects) hits the big screen just in time for Halloween. Back are writer Leigh Whannell, Tobin Bell as the sadistic teacher, and Shawnee Smith as Amanda the druggie 'saved' by Jigsaw in the first film. Out is Saw director James Wan... in is Darren Lynn Bousman and the film is just as professionally crafted as the first. Folks who hated the quick edit style of the first film will hate Bousman, but who cares, I like it. In Saw II, there's an excellent script, ambient mood music, and good dose of style thrown in for a film that has some sources derived from a series of hidden cameras. The result is still surprisingly effective, and director Bousman does a commendable job in crafting the right mood and opportunities for some very effective thrills and chills. It's also a damn bit of great luck that the sequel is a unique neo-horror hero experiment that does not fall into the very same trappings so many other horror films do, relying on clichés and sensationalism, and ultimately ditching all that it builds up for a ludicrous slash-and-gash ending. In the follow up to last years Saw, Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) locks a few unlucky people in a booby-trapped shelter; they must find a way out before they inhale too much of a lethal nerve gas and die. But they must watch out, for the traps Jigsaw has set in the shelter lead to death also. (plot summary from IMDB) During the early scenes when we aren't exactly sure what is going on, the film is full of intrigue and suspense, with an especially stylish look and feel generated by Bousman. We know just as little as the six victims do, we feel like we are among them, wondering who or what might be behind the strange occurrence of being abducted, the keys to the mystery that Jigsaw has laid out for them, and the voyeuristic elements lead to a feeling of shared guilt. You see, all of the victims have something in common and once they figure it out, all hell breaks loose. Saw II is an evolutionary horror film, and definitely a revolutionary one. It is different in premise than many other cookie-cutter teen horror films we've seen in recent years, but it does not suffer from the same poor build-up of its characters and trappings of gratuitous sex, drugs and rock n' roll stereotypes. The cast does rounds out nicely, and all put in fine performances, even Donnie Wahlberg as Detective Eric Mason... the seemingly innocent Daniel (Eric Knudsen), the 'can't we all just get along' Jonas (Glenn Plummer), the potential psycho Xavier (Franky G), the lonely outcast Laura (Beverley Mitchell), the sexpot Addison (Emmanuelle Vaugier) and the enigmatic one, returning to her character Amanda from the first film (Shawnee Smith). I won't spoil the film except to say that if you are familiar with how slasher movies tend to play out, you probably *WILL NOT* guess the gist of how things will proceed up until the excellent, open-ended epilogue. I promise you... it will not be as easy to figure out, if you do, I commend you. Whannell and Bousman really sock it to us in the final reels, and we even get to re-visit some old stomping grounds from the first film. Wonder what happened to the good Doctor and Adam? Well, guess what... we find out. Saw II does prove to be worth watching, as it does go in a different direction. Different directions can still lead you to the same destination, especially in sequels. However, all viewers should find plenty in the film to engage their interest, including some much deserved back story on our anti-hero Jigsaw. Oh, and in case you think I'm going to spoil anything for you... I didn't plan on it. But I will tell you this... Saw 3? Yes... You are probably saying 'how if Jigsaw is dying from cancer'? Lets just say that Jigsaw opens to the door to a whole new generation of films, and boy does it ever make for one of the I say bring it on!!!! OFFICIAL SITE DISCUSS ON OUR FORUMS Review by John Gray, for Pitofhorror.com