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Movies / On DVD / Saw
Saw

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Saw (2004)

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Reviews Counted:158

Fresh:74

Rotten:84

Average Rating:5.4/10

Consensus: A twisted and gory horror film that's not for the squeamish.

Runtime: 1 hr 40 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

Synopsis: How far would you go to save your own life? Prepare yourself for a gut-wrenching trip into the heart of terror with SAW, Lions Gate Films’ gripping horror film starring Cary Elwes, Danny Glover,... How far would you go to save your own life? Prepare yourself for a gut-wrenching trip into the heart of terror with SAW, Lions Gate Films’ gripping horror film starring Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Monica Potter and Leigh Whannell. Obsessed with teaching his victims the value of life, a deranged, sadistic serial killer is abducting morally wayward people and forcing them to play macabre games for their own survival. Faced with impossible choices, each victim must struggle to win back his/her life, or else die trying… A young man named Adam (LEIGH WHANNELL) wakes to find himself chained to a rusty pipe inside a decrepit subterranean chamber. Chained to the opposite side of the room is another bewildered captive, Dr. Lawrence Gordon (CARY ELWES). Between them is a dead man lying in a pool of blood, holding a .38 in his hand. Neither man knows why he has been abducted, but instructions left on a microcassette order Dr. Gordon to kill Adam within eight hours. If he fails to do so, then both men will die; Dr. Gordon’s wife, Alison (MONICA POTTER), and his daughter will also be killed. Recalling a recent murder investigation by a police detective named Tapp (DANNY GLOVER), Dr. Gordon realizes he and Adam are the next victims of a psychopathic genius known only as “Jigsaw.” With only a few hours left to spare, they must unravel the elaborate puzzle of their fate in the midst of mounting terror. The killer has provided them with only a few clues and two handsaws - too weak to break their steel shackles, but strong enough to cut through flesh and bone… Gritty and terrifying, SAW is a taut, squirm-inducing film packed with moments of indelible horror. Director James Wan expertly spins this intricate tale, creating a chilling landscape of dread where nothing is quite as it seems. An edge-of-your-seat ride bristling with emotional intensity, SAW will keep you guessing until the very end. Keep the lights on; you won't sleep easily tonight. [More]

Starring: Cary Elwes, Leigh Whannell, Monica Potter, Danny Glover

Starring: Cary Elwes, Leigh Whannell, Monica Potter, Danny Glover, Dina Meyer, Ken Leung, Shawnee Smith, Ned Bellamy

Director: James Wan

Director: James Wan
Screenwriter: Leigh Whannell
Producer: Mark Burg, Oren Koules
Composer: Charlie Clouser
Studio: Lions Gate Films

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Reviews for Saw

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1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; UK critics are listed first)
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Full Review Source: Empire Magazine | comment 1 Comment
04/01/06
Empire Magazine
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
10/06/04
Jamie Russell
Jamie Russell
BBC
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Click to read the article

Full Review Source: ViewLondon | comment Comment
10/06/04
Matthew Turner
Matthew Turner
ViewLondon

This disturbing and violent movie gleefully plays with our minds as it twists and turns through its tricky, menacing plot.

Full Review Source: Shadows on the Wall | comment Comment
09/19/04
Rich Cline
Rich Cline
Shadows on the Wall
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
06/24/06
Time Out
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Horrible acting aside, it's the kind of Halloween treat that'll have you checking your backseat after leaving the theater.

Full Review Source: E! Online | comment Comment
10/29/04
E! Online
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

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Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
12/06/05
Film Threat
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

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Full Review Source: Sunday Times (Australia) | comment Comment
12/20/04
Sunday Times (Australia)
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Original, sorprendente, terrible, intensa. Un recuerdo de lo que el cine de terror y thriller debe ser, una historia que te atrapa, y te corta en pedazos.

Full Review Source: Cinenganos | comment Comment
03/07/05
Alex Ramirez
Alex Ramirez
Cinenganos

While it doesn't live up to its reputation of being one of the most disturbing horror films ever made, it does have its fair share of deliciously twisted moments.

Full Review Source: Juicy Cerebellum | comment Comment
10/27/04
Alex Sandell
Alex Sandell
Juicy Cerebellum

real horror arises from the stuff of genuine nightmares, stuff that the story-writing duo examines with intimate, even salacious, detail

Full Review Source: Killer Movie Reviews | comment Comment
10/19/04
Andrea Chase
Andrea Chase
Killer Movie Reviews

A fun ride if you don't think too much about it after it's over.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
10/29/04
Annlee Ellingson
Annlee Ellingson
Boxoffice Magazine

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Movie Gazette | comment Comment
10/30/04
Anton Bitel
Anton Bitel
Movie Gazette

The simple setup ropes us in immediately and never lets up, and some of the imagery will stick with even the most hardened viewer for days.

Full Review Source: FromTheBalcony | comment Comment
06/26/05
Bill Clark
Bill Clark
FromTheBalcony

While a tad derivative, Saw shows promise of better things to come from Whannell’s imagination and Wan’s composition.

Full Review Source: Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN) | comment Comment
11/01/04
Bob Bloom
Bob Bloom
Journal and Courier (Lafayette, IN)

For horror fans, the movie kicks butt.

Full Review Source: Jam! Movies | comment Comment
10/29/04
Bruce Kirkland
Bruce Kirkland
Jam! Movies

Terrifying at some moments and insinuatingly creepy at many others.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
10/29/04
Carla Meyer
Carla Meyer
San Francisco Chronicle

Saw isn't as good as Seven, but it more than lives up to the promise implied in the name of the company that made it: Twisted Films.

Full Review Source: St. Paul Pioneer Press | comment Comment
10/28/04
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
Chris Hewitt (St. Paul)
St. Paul Pioneer Press

The gripping, bloodcurdling Saw is the best serial-killer thriller since Bill Paxton's Frailty.

Full Review Source: Fantastica Daily | comment Comment
10/29/04
Chuck O'Leary
Chuck O'Leary
Fantastica Daily

I’m glad I saw “Saw” because it was pretty good.

Full Review Source: Broomfield Enterprise | comment 1 Comment
01/03/05
Dan Marcucci and Nancy Serougi
Dan Marcucci and Nancy Serougi
Broomfield Enterprise
 
 
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; UK critics are listed first)
Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 >> >|
all

Latest News for Saw

October 15, 2009: See Saw with Alex, Day 1: Saw
Click. Stop. Movie's over. Just saw Saw and, you know what, I'm actually looking forward to these movies supposedly becoming terrible because Saw the first remains an involving,... More...

October 12, 2009: Get Ready to See Saw with Alex
If it's Halloween, then it must be time for a new Saw. And if it's a new Saw, then it must be time to start up another Rotten Tomatoes trademark watching series. Come, join me... More...

May 08, 2008: Saw Director Cutting into Hellraiser Franchise? Opens in new window
Even though the director of SAW II-IV claims to have nothing to do with the project, insiders tell us the Weinsteins WANT HIM on the project ASAP. More...

March 13, 2008: Charlie Sheen Getting Twisted in Next Film
When you see the words "Charlie Sheen" and "torture" in the same sentence, you probably assume you're reading about Sheen career achievements like Terminal Velocity or The... More...

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