Rated R for graphic violence, gore, torture, language
Starring Costas Mandylor, Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith, Betsy Russell, Peter Outerbridge
Picking up where the 5th installment left off, Lt. Mark Hoffman works quickly to cover his tracks after the death of Agent Strahm who died because he got to close to the truth and learned that Hoffman was another apprentice of Jigsaw's and was carrying out Jigsaw's work despite his death. Hoffman tries to pin the evidence of the latest game (the one in #5) on Strahm using his fingerprints, while still working on the inside.
Meanwhile, we learn that Jigsaw left his ex-wife Jill a box with items in it, which included instructions for Hoffman for the next game in his master plan. Hoffman quickly does what he can to get it all set up and before he gets caught - turns out, using audio equipment, the Jigsaw audio tape that was found at the scene of the events in #5 can be descrambled and it proves that it isn't Jigsaw, but someone else - Hoffman.
In the new game, we see a mother and her son trapped in one boiler room with a tank of acid in the corner connected to a switch box where one setting says "live" while the other says "die" and clock is counting down the time. The mother declares, "We're here because of your father." In similar boiler room (sans acid tank) is reporter Pamela Jenkins, who was nosing around, trying to find out what was in the box Jigsaw left for his wife. Playing the game is health insurance executive William Easton.
See, when Jigsaw first learned he was dying of cancer, he went and did some research for himself and found a doctor in Europe who was looking to take on new patients for his experimental tests that had a high success rate. Jigsaw approached William about having his insurance cover the high cost of this, but William, who runs the company using a formula that determines who should get the health benefits (usually those in good health instead of those that are sick and could actually benefit from treatment), denies him because it is merely experimental, despite the evidence of a high success rate.
Starting the game, William has 4 devices attached to each of his limbs - one on each wrist, another on each foot. He must survive through 4 series of tests to keep himself intact - failure to complete a test will either blow off a limb or kill him if he doesn't make it through the test. Also, failure to complete the game will result in him never seeing his family again. At the end of each test, he receives a key to remove one of the devices. Making the game even harder is that his employees are the pawns!
In one test he has to decide which of 2 employees will be hanged - the middle aged mother with an illness, or the healthy young go-getter who doesn't have a family. According to his company's formula, the woman should die, but which choice will he make? In the next test, he has to help a female employee in a steam room get through a maze below him within a certain time or else the device around her neck will pierce her skull - in order to make it easier for her though, he has to direct some of the steam onto himself, creating a safe passageway for her. There is a twist though, as the key to unlock the device around her neck is just under William's skin on the side of his torso. In the final test, William finds 6 of his top staff members strapped to a spinning carousel with a rifle pointed towards it. He is told that by slipping his hands into a device attached to the gun, he can choose to save 2 of them by letting it pierce his hands and divert the gun upwards, however it is automatic so when the carousel stops spinning he has only seconds to make his choice. Some of his employees begin to tell sob stories - one girl claims to be pregnant, another with young kids at home... another claims she has sick parents who need her to take of them but then another employee calls out her lie saying he knows for a fact her parents disowned her and that she's always talking about how she hates them. Who's telling the truth and who's lying just to save themself?
This was an interesting installment to the Jigsaw franchise as it had several unexpected but welcomed twists to it.
It also featured some new flashback scenes which explained some of the things from the previous movies (such the letter Amanda receives in 3 that causes her to go off the edge and mess things up a bit). There was also a contest in late 2008, where the wining actress of the VH1 reality competition show Scream Queens would win a breakout role in the film. The winner of the first season, Tanedra Howard, was featured in the opening segment (which was also probably the goriest of the whole movie).
Since Saw 3D (aka Saw VII) is the last of the franchise, it'll be interesting to see how it all ties up!
If you're a fan of the Saw franchise, it wouldn't hurt to see this one (which was one of the better ones), however if you haven't gotten into them or past the first one, there really is no point jumping in at this one.
Rated PG13 for innuendo, brief violence, some language
