SAW V

Agent Strahm was trapped by Detective Hoffman, the disciple of the Jigsaw Killer, but he manages to avoid death and is rescued by his colleagues. After a brief period of convalescence, Strahm begins investigating Hoffman, finding clues that confirm his devotion to the late John Kramer. Meanwhile, five people are trapped in a building and subjected to a series of deadly trials that seek to test their loyalty. "Saw" has become a fixed appointment that, willingly or not, we find ourselves facing at least once a year. Some have taken it well and rejoice at the announcement of the release date of each new chapter of the saga, while others have found it boring and pretend not to know which number we are at. The box office gives reason to those at Lionsgate, and if their latest episode is capable of earning more than 30 million dollars in the first weekend of programming with a budget that barely reaches 10 million, it is certain that the ghost of the Jigsaw Killer will haunt the cinema screens for a long time to come. But what does "Saw V" have to offer? The overseas critics have massacred it, some fans have remained lukewarm, and yet within the saga this fifth chapter does not rank last in the qualitative ranking, because, despite the menacing number in Roman numerals that it carries, it has something to say. In reality, the greatest merit of "Saw V" is the partial rehabilitation of the saga after an uninspired number four, in which all the limits until then hidden by the saga were felt, namely narrative repetitiveness and the insertion of useless "twists" imposed only to stretch the broth. "Saw V" by force of circumstances must start from some of those twists, but it has the merit of managing to put order to the confused "stream of consciousness" that was being created by giving a reason to some characters introduced in the fourth chapter and clarifying, inevitably, new aspects of the Jigsaw Killer's actions, returning this time, with a time jump, to his primary objective: punish those who do not know how to appreciate their luck, redeem the sinners. The screenwriters Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton (the same as the previous chapter) therefore try to create a whole with the previous film and make as many elements as possible coincide that are scattered throughout the entire saga, adding some that will be developed in the upcoming chapters. To do this, they build a plot that resembles in more points that of the second chapter, in which the investigative development of the protagonist alternates and merges with a group of people trapped in a cramped place and put to the test in an obstacle course that almost resembles a video game. The level of cruelty is always quite high, even if the gore spectacle is perhaps a bit lower compared to the two previous chapters and the same traps seem less imaginative than usual. However, a trap/torture, the pendulum, appears that will surely remain well impressed in the minds of the viewers and represents one of the most impressive scenes so far in the entire saga. The directorial baton passes from Darren Lynn Bousman to David Hackl, director of the second unit of chapters three and four, but the change is not noticed at all, confirming that the direction in this saga counts for little and is subordinate to the work of the cinematographer, the editor, the production designer, and of course the screenwriters. Main actors underperforming, the bovine faces of Costas Mandylor (Detective Hoffman) and Scott Patterson (Agent Strahm) appear really unconvincing and convincing, a bit better Julie Benz ("John Rambo"; the TV series "Dexter") here in the claws of the Jigsaw Killer, while now a guarantee is the icon of the saga Tobin Bell. In short, we proceed struggling, we add elements to the puzzle, we try to make the still semi-circle fit, but in the end we have quite a bit of fun despite the fact that the saga has begun to smell bad for a couple of chapters. Number five is still enjoyable. Take half a pumpkin off the final score.