A bad film badly written, badly performed, badly scored, and most of all, badly directed, Saw's a mess, a waste of flesh. And I don't mean that in a good way.
1 Comment
10/27/04
Saw (2004)
47
%
Tomatometer
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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,... [More]
Starring: Cary Elwes, Leigh Whannell, Monica Potter, Danny Glover
Director: James Wan
Reviews for Saw
The terror has started immediately, and won't relent until the final frame. No, make that five minutes after the final frame.
10/27/04
In this age of cookie cutter thrillers, here's one that, for better or worse (or a bit of both), stands apart from the pack.
10/27/04
The back-shelf-of-the-video-store horror geek in me was intermittently entertained.
10/27/04
An unsatisfying copout that falls apart five minutes after you leave the theater
10/27/04
Sick as the story is, it's the visuals that give Saw it's visceral punch.
10/27/04
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.
10/27/04
James Wan's Saw starts off incomprehensibly, turns nasty in a hurry, and ultimately induces numb exhaustion.
10/26/04
Showcases gratuitous gore and the ubiquitously macabre bells and whistles that pass themselves off as fear.
10/26/04
On the strength of a grippingly original concept and 90 strong minutes of building action, Saw gets a recommendation, but only if you like this kind of thing.
10/25/04
I'm sure there's an audience somewhere for this sick sort of story, but I couldn't stomach it.
10/25/04
Predictably, the twists exist for their own sake and aren’t grounded in character or theme.
10/22/04
real horror arises from the stuff of genuine nightmares, stuff that the story-writing duo examines with intimate, even salacious, detail
10/19/04
Dark and twisted.
10/18/04
Director James Wan hits the grisly button without shame.
10/15/04
My only disappointment after the arterial mayhem here is with the final resolution, but I'm not going to be so aberrated as to tell you what it is.
10/12/04
And I thought the slow-motion flying flesh of The Passion of the Mel was sadistic. It's Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo placed alongside James Wan's grissly Saw.
10/10/04
See Saw!
10/08/04
There are cheaply effective if unoriginal scares. Filmmakers bring a certain verve to such moments; but building atmosphere and suspense is well beyond them. Ditto handling actors.
09/29/04
Top CriticThough the film does work marginally well as a satire of modern serial killer thrillers and their Byzantine games of cat-and-mouse, I have a hunch that's the zeitgeist's doing
09/16/04
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? 
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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