Saw III (Darren Lynn Bousman, 2006)

There once was a series named Saw,
That had a penchant for extreme movie gore,
It was littered with traps,
Bones frequently snapped,
But by this one most people were bored.

I was intending to have the whole of this review in limerick form but sadly I’m not that creative.

It is true though that despite being a box office success; critics were far from kind to Saw III. I can see why. Unlike the first and, arguably, the second, the gore in this is not so much a by-product of a disturbing story but the main attraction. Much of the nastiness is shot with a lover’s eye. The brain surgery scene is extended and particularly graphic, frequently showing extreme close ups of brain, skin and skull, and the Rack Trap is just horrific. Saw III definitely marks the point where the story had become strained enough for the filmmakers to try and hide its inadequacies with extreme brutality.

That said, I do think that this is the second best of the sequels. It’s better than two and light years ahead of four and five. Coming in just behind six (yes, the sixth one really is rather good), as a horror fan, I felt it did its job perfectly fine. In true Saw fashion, the ending was the bleakest of the bleak and there is some very competent direction and acting here.

It’s nasty, arguably repugnant and definitely not for those with a weak constitution but, as a movie, there’s nothing actually inherently wrong with it.

I found it perfectly fine.

3.5/5