SAW II

RATING:

Starring: Donnie Wahlberg, Shawnee Smith, Tobin Bell, Franky G., Glenn Plummer, Dina Meyer, Emmanuael Vaugier, Beverley Mitchell, Eric Knudsen. Written by: Darren Lynn Bousman, Leigh Whannell. Directed by: Darren Lynn Bousman.

Rated R for grisly violence and gore, terror, language and drug content

Allow me to begin this review by stating that I am in fact a fan of the original “SAW”. While being a great movie, one that certainly breathed a bit of fresh air into a then fairly stale market, it was not without flaws and certainly came under fire by a lot of individuals.

Putting all of that aside there is one thing that I will hold true to saying about this sequel, it does not really feel like a sequel at all but more of a continuation of the first movie. Sitting down in the theatre, after the lights had gone out and the opening credits had displayed themselves, my eyes were treated to the first of JIGSAW’S sick games, and I was loving every moment of it. The editing and atmosphere presented within the first few minutes was practically identical to the first in everyway, grungy, sick, full of fast cuts and movements showing fright and anger all rolled up into one characters actions.

The story presents itself a little differently in this one, with the biggest change being that Jigsaw is no longer trying to be as elusive or out of the spotlight, so to speak, as he was in the first one. This time he calls out Detective Eric Matthews (Mr. NKOTB himself Donnie Wahlberg) who had previously worked on the “JIGSAW” case. Yes it is true what you might have heard, a large chunk of the movie is spent switching between the progressing story of the 8 people trapped in a booby-trapped house, and an on-going conversation between JIGSAW and Detective Mason. But it has its reasons and certainly has its merits. The 8 people stuck together in the house, as you may have heard, are breathing in a very destructive nerve gas that they will only survive with an antidote. As with all of JIGSAW’S games though, it is in fact up to the players if they wish to live or die, all they have to do is shed a little blood and show they appreciate the life that has been given to them.

The editing and atmosphere stays true throughout the entire movie and does not skip a beat, which brings me to the acting that held it all together. In one corner we have Donnie Wahlberg, and the lovely Dina Meyer (Starship Troopers, Saw) and these two certainly work great together. Wahlberg spends most of his time playing games with JIGSAW, but the time he spends conversing with Meyer is definitely a thumbs up, and kind of gives you a good cop/bad cop feeling to the characters. Meyer is cautious and wants to handle the situation lightly as to not upset/anger JIGSAW into doing something that could end the game quickly, whereas Wahlberg is pushed into dealing with JIGSAW (I won’t go into details) and displays nothing but anger and hatred. This works extremely well and the audience seemed to love it.

Over to JIGSAW, played by the talented Tobin Bell, as the story of JIGSAW unfold you see how the character goes from average citizen to deranged psychopathic cancer patient who can barely hold up a plastic cup without shaking profusely. His voice was perfect for the character, and his mannerisms were as convincing as you could get in my opinion.

In the house we have a surprising cast thrown together, some of them recognized right away and others it took some time to figure it out. First off we have the Lovely Beverley Mitchell (7th Heaven, The Crow: City of Angels), she has improved her acting since I last saw her, and she definitely did not disappoint. Then we have Glenn Plummer (The Day After Tomorrow, Showgirls), not a bad choice in all, little awkward in some parts. What about Tony Nappo? (Four Brothers, Land of the Dead) he’s there, and his character didn’t require much. Next up is Emmanuelle Vaugier (House of the Dead 2, Wishmaster 3) Once again, not bad, but it didn’t seem like there was a lot to screw up here. And there was Franky G. (Wonderland, The Italian Job) surprisingly a more in depth character than the rest, and he pulled it off nicely. Finally there is the wonderful Shawnee Smith (Saw, The Stand) who plays Amanda, the only survivor from the first movie (bear trap in reverse anyone?) it appears she was not nice to herself after the events of the first one, JIGSAW did not appreciate this. And we won’t go into details on anybody else. And the reason for not detailing anybody else? Because it doesn’t matter, as a whole you see that the characters in the house are merely a side story that is full of nothing but pain and suffering.

So to end this review I will sum this all up into a very simple statement, If you are a fan of the original, you will not be disappointed, if you did not like the original, you may want to avoid it. The movie has its twists and turns in plot and story, and keeps you guessing what’s going on.