Saw VII The Final Chapter

There Will Be Pink Blood
I'll keep this review simple, since it is after all the seventh film in the SAW series. Since 2004, I've made the trek to my local theater to see what Jigsaw had in store, but it's become more of a chore with each passing year. The first three movies were the best, but these last two are worthy sequels. I didn't care much for IV or V. The acting this time around is okay and story doesn't lag too much, but I have to say that the traps and gore level is probably the highest of all the films. If only the blood didn't look so cheap, with a noticeable pinkish hue, I think I would have had a harder time not turning away from the carnage. There are a couple of twists that I won't spoil, but the major one was predicted more than a few movies ago by most SAW fans. Still, it is pretty neat and will hopefully wrap up these movies for good.

The 3-D wasn't really needed, but it did have a couple of body parts flying through the air moments to shine.

Trap heavy, but a weak conclusion to a seven year franchise
None of the Saw films have been able to capture the same atmosphere or effectiveness of the original film. The sequels weren't able to screw with your head or have a twist that was quite as big as the one in the 2004 film. Most of the sequels had a budget of around $10 million, but went on to gross over $50 million at the box office. It's no wonder that Jigsaw is the new face of horror and the Saw films are being called the modern version of Friday the 13th since the sequels hit every year around Halloween like clockwork. So now, here we are, the "final" installment in the franchise and it's being presented in 3-D. Unfortunately, Saw 3D leaves a lot to be desired.

The film honestly felt like it was just trap after trap after trap until we reached the finale. The traps were bigger and sure, they looked pretty great in 3-D, but they were happening to new characters; characters we didn't know or care about. It seemed like they tried to cram as many traps they could into an...

It should have been amazing.
In the seventh go around, the 3D gimmick is employed to make the crazy traps come alive. And being the seventh entry, it's only natural that this Saw is in need of a good sharpening.

I've seen every film in this series, and this one falls somewhere in the middle as far as plot, quality, and creativity go. The movie is being advertised as the final Saw, and I hope that's true. I have always been intrigued by the overall premise - which isn't just to slice and dice innocent victims like so much of the "torture porn" does nowadays. These movies take moral and ethical dilemmas, and turn them into inventive life or death games. This seventh film lost a lot of the originality and the traps seemed quite repetitive, while many of the deaths were not justifiable in the realm of the Saw logic. Here the filmmakers just decided to splatter as much blood on their 3D audience for sheer shock value - and that is not something I am a fan of.

I will say, without spoiling the...

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