Spooky Season Preview Part Two: Are the ‘Saw’ Films Worth Rewatching?

Ah, Saw. The horrifically gory franchise of films that had the early 2000s and 2010s in a pop-culture chokehold. Though the obvious answer to the question “are these films worth a rewatch” (or a watch at all, for that matter) may be a resounding “no” from most, I’ve found that these spooky films can be a fun, Halloween-y watch in the autumn. First, let me explain—

Why the ‘Saw’ films might be worth watching (if you like horror and early-2000s alt-rock)

The first film in the Saw franchise is the only one I’ll allow myself to call genuinely “good”, it for its originality of premise and impressively horrifying set design alone. The acting? Obviously not great. The writing? Often too contrived to even seem profound— but the little things that make your skin crawl in the first Saw film make it more horrifying than most of its contemporary horror films.

First, the premise. Dude, the premise. Imagine being locked in a disgusting, filthy bathroom and discovering that your only hope of escaping is to saw off your own leg. That alone was nightmare fuel to a younger me, and still gives me the creeps to this day. Second, the little twists within the first film we’re genuinely shocking— no, really. None of us expected Kramer to get up and walk at the end of the film, or even that he was the killer who’d created this whole trap (and simply lied there in silence while his victims suffered to figure it all out). Like, seriously? Cheesy as any other modern horror film, yes— but you can’t tell me that Saw didn’t genuinely scare you the first time you saw it.

Now, what about the others? James Wan and company stayed on the Saw train mostly just for the first few films, but quite honestly they all fly off the rails about ten minutes in as the writers began to care more about selling tickets on the premise of gratuitous violence than sticking to the moral core of the first film’s philosophical dilemma. However, that doesn’t mean they aren’t fun horror viewing, from time to time.

For example, I still get a good scare from every Saw film when I rewatch them, and as the camp factor increases throughout films, they at least remain a little fun to watch. From the ridiculous and far-fetched twists of Saw III to the actually kind of good writing in Saw VI, these films always provide a good Halloween scare and make you scratch your head as you try to keep up with all the plot twists and turns all the while. So, before you write these movies off as silly, low-brow cinema (which— that’s fair, lol), maybe give them a shot and see if they make you shiver this Halloween. And hey, they’re kind of nostalgic for all of us millennial Halloweenies, right?

Xoxo, MM.