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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
Over two years following the Saw franchise’s ninth entry, Spiral: From the Book of Saw, we are back with a tenth installment, brilliantly titled Saw X. This second addition to the 2020s era of Jigsaw-related horror mystery thriller storytelling takes place between 2004’s first Saw film and its 2005 follow-up, Saw II. I got to see it in theaters yesterday, and there are visual improvements over several franchise entries’ aesthetic presentations while narratively sticking to what’s been working.
Saw X is directed by Kevin Greutert (Saw VI, Saw 3D/ Saw: The Final Chapter). The film is also co-written by Pete Goldfinger (Avatar: The Last Airbender, Sorority Row, Piranha 3DD, Jigsaw, Spiral) and Josh Stolberg (Avatar: The Last Airbender, Sorority Row, Piranha 3DD, Jigsaw, Spiral).
In this review, I will discuss Kevin Greutert’s Saw X. As the title of this article suggests, there will be no spoilers from the film present here. With that said, references to previously released franchise films may appear.
Discussion
Saw X is one of the finer installments fans will get since the outset of the film series. Greutert takes a page from his prior two involvements and delivers a narrative about a medical-related matter that has gone problematic. Everything about this film contains what is expected from a story tied to the “Jigsaw Killer”, John Kramer (Tobin Bell)—wicked and brutal traps leading to a plot twist here or there.
What makes this installment unique from most others is its unified plot. In the previous nine films, there would be Plot A, which served as a police procedural, while Plot B placed “victims” in their traps. Some films followed one central character as they attempted to save friends and acquaintances from their own personal fates, whereas other films focused on a group of victims who must cooperate and collaborate to escape their trap as a collective. Co-writers Goldfinger and Stolberg switch up the formula a bit to provide something uncanny.
This current film takes a while to get to the primary conflict involving the victims. Although, the build-up is splendid work… and if you were anxious about the timeline within the franchise, the screenwriters take a page from Final Destination 5 and drop a flip-phone or two into the narrative as literal plot devices.
A Sight to See Or Unsee
Making Mexico City the main backdrop for the film is an interesting choice and a small, temporary change in setting. With a budget of $13 million USD, production designer Anthony Stabley and his team did excellently at keeping the narrative compact albeit with a longer runtime—a near-two hours as opposed to the usual hour-and-a-half. Saw X has been marketed as a Mexico-centric Saw movie with Kramer having to take a trip to the country south of the United States. Aside from one victim suffering a specific fate connected to the country in some manner, I just did not understand what the point was.
Mary Beth McAndrews of Dread Central says it best; it’s difficult to ignore the fact that a majority of Kramer’s victims are brown, situated in Mexico, and exploited by an affluent white woman. There could have been more to celebrate the location setting other than a few landmarks on display. Cinematographer Nick Matthews shoots some good footage of the country. To add to that, Kramer looks at a landscape of the city outside of the city, which looks like an actual painting. However, the film paints these victims in a bad light and a stereotypical one at that—one pops pills, one has a somewhat lascivious lifestyle, and another cleans floors to earn a living wage.
On the brighter side, there are some intriguing aesthetic elements that are to be appreciated. In one minor scene, we see a shot of Kramer inside a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning machine. The flashes of light either point to Kramer’s renewal as a character or implicate his spiral into desperation. Moreover, the medical facility set piece is intriguing, almost reminiscent of one setting from the Saw video games of the late-2000s.
Breaking the Trap Apart
One narrative element that the film highlights is how patience in the dark brings one’s authentic self to the surface. As it has been with all or most traps in the Saw franchise, the only way to escape from a trap is the pushes an individual makes, and this requires a will to live. For example, in the first film, Dr. Lawrence Gordon (Cary Elwes) saws off his foot to get out of ankle restraints.
Many of Saw X‘s victims lack such patience, and it feels vexing to watch. As the late French psychoanalyst Anne Dufourmantelle writes in her text, In Praise of Risk: “Life is a heedless risk taken by us, the living. … At the instant of decision, risk calls into question our intimate relationship with time. … To risk one’s life at decisive moments of our existence is an act that pushes ahead of us on the basis of a still unknown knowledge” (1-2). Some of the film’s traps are not as harsh or severe as others actually are, and they just come down to whether an individual is willing to break their bones to save themselves.
To an extreme extent, a lot of these traps are life-threatening. It begs victims to ask themselves just how much of their selves they are willing to give up. Frankly, it is an unfortunate nuisance to see some victims unwilling to push themselves in their final few minutes when they must (and should) choose between life and death. Realistically speaking, my favorite trap is one that requires wire and bone marrow. Even then, it’s a test of time…
The Crew Behind Saw X
Nick Matthews serves as the film’s cinematographer.
Evan Yarbrough is the storyboard artist for the film. Greutert is the film’s editor. Karen Espinal and Hugo Hahn are the additional editors for Mexico City. Alejo Cardenas and Rocío Ribeiro Mendonza are the assistant editors for Mexico City.
Charlie Clouser (Saw franchise, American Horror Story, American Horror Stories) scores and mixes the music of the film. Adam Stein (The Witch, Ready or Not, In the Tall Grass, From) is the supervising sound editor and sound designer. Dave Rose is the sound effects editor. Simon Miminis (Jigsaw, Spiral, Infinity Pool) is the music editor. The Wilders and Victoria Beard are the music supervisors of the film.
Stephanie Gorin is the casting director. Jasmine Gutierrez is the casting associate.
Anthony Stabley serves as the production designer. Ricardo/Rika Dávila serves as the art director. Óscar Orci is the set designer.
The Cast of Saw X
Tobin Bell portrays the film’s protagonist, John Kramer, also known as the “Jigsaw Killer”. Shawnee Smith returns in the role of Amanda Young, Kramer’s apprentice.
Synnøve Macody Lund plays Cecilia Pederson, a Norwegian doctor. Steven Brand plays Parker Sears, a patient at the Mexico City treatment facility.
Renata Vaca portrays Gabriela, another patient at the facility. Joshua Okamoto plays Diego, a taxi driver, and Dr. Cortez. Octavio Hinojosa and Paulette Hernández portray Mateo and Valentina, two nurses at the facility, respectively.
Jorge Briseño portrays Carlos, a young child who lives by the facility.
Costas Mandylor appears as Detective Lieutenant Mark Hoffman. Michael Beach portrays Henry Kessler, an acquaintance from Kramer’s cancer support group. Isan Beomhyun Lee portrays a hospital custodian.
Katie Barbieri plays the cancer support group leader. Lucía Gómez-Robledo plays an MRI technician.
Donagh Gordon appears as Dr. Finn Pederson, Cecilia Pederson’s father. Sebastián Torres plays a masked gunman. Cristo Ruiz plays a tattooed guy.
Baltimore Beltrán plays Carlos’s father. Kerry Ardra plays a TV host.
Kramer v. Kramer: Tobin Bell’s Performance and Character Development
Out of all the characters that appear in this film, Bell’s John Kramer seems to shine the brightest. With Kramer, there are morals that devout fans already gained from prior installments, such as Saw IV (2007) and Jigsaw (2017). He teaches his victims that people will need to save themselves if they want to live, and there truly is no other way to go about it.
The actor captures Kramer at his most human, not necessarily most vulnerable, especially in his scenes with Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith) and a Mexican boy named Carlos (Jorge Briseño). One particular scene accentuates Kramer’s humanity, and it’s a moment that you could not get out of an AI-powered robot; sorry, Hollywood executives. It’s enough to make me believe that this character could be an anti-hero as opposed to the objective notion of him as a villain or antagonist.
Unfortunately, I do not think Kramer has as much of an adversary in Cecilia Pederson (Synnøve Macody Lund) as he does in himself. His quest for justice may not be the best means for the specific context here, and it almost paints him as someone with a sort of white savior complex.
Final Thoughts on Saw X
Impressively, Saw X is a top-tier installment in the Saw franchise that serves as the “lost chapter”. Now, if only we could get more Lawrence Gordon… Victims redefine the risks of life and not dying within the rhetorical appeal. As Dufourmantelle asserts, by revolting against the light or embracing the darkness, “[t]urning around is a true risk” because the risk of not dying is “a wager in the face of what, precisely, remains undecidable. It thus opens the possibility that something unhoped for will happen” (7). Greutert’s film gets this right, even if the events aren’t best executed. It’s a vision-stretching experience to fall for, and you may surely lose your breath or mind!
4/5
Kevin Greutert’s Saw X is now playing in theaters!
Have you seen the film yet? If so, then what are your thoughts on it so far? Let us know! For more horror, mystery, and thriller-related news and reviews, do not forget to follow The Cinema Spot on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!
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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
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