As a deadly battle rages over Jigsaw’s brutal legacy, a group of Jigsaw survivors gathers to seek the support of self-help guru and fellow survivor Bobby Dagen, a man whose own dark secrets unleash a new wave of terror.
Now I must be honest here, I never went to the cinema to experience the full 3D effect of this film, 3D films give me migraines and it’s hard to wear the 3D glasses when I have to wear glasses when I do go to see a movie anyway.
With this being the final installment in the “SAW” series we were told that things would be over the top and things would end with a bang. When I first heard that I was worried the studio would focus more on gore content than actually giving the story a great ending, I shouldn’t have worried because what we got was a great unravelling of the story.
The films main focus is on Hoffman, he’s getting sloppy with covering his tracks and seems to be going a little crazy. We also see more of Jigsaw ex wife who has got her own instructions of what to do. Tobin Bell is back for his last outing as Jigsaw and is amazing as always, by this point you almost feel for his character as we have slowly been shown what happened to him to become Jigsaw.
The traps in this final installment are some of the most gruesome and goriest of the series, there also over the top, which I’m not saying is a bad thing at all, it’s good to see that the Hoffman character is becoming more menacing and in your face with them instead of just following orders.
The acting in this film is fantastic, especially the performance from Betsy Russell (Jigsaws ex-wife), she doesn’t ever need to say a word because this is an actor who can play out the emotions of her character on her face, you feel she truly got hold of her character and in some way connected with her. Same goes for Costas Mandylors performance of Hoffman, he seems more sinister here and he plays it very well.
I can’t compare the non-3D to the 3D release but what I can say is that we get a shocking ending and whilst we’re still left with some questions (I like a little mystery) we are given answers to the big questions everyone had and it’s a great ending to a great series.
Miscellaneous facts about the film:
In early 2009, producers viewed the original Saw film converted to 3D. They were so impressed, the possibility of a seventh installment in 3D became an instant guarantee.
On January 25, 2010, news hit that director David Hackl had officially been let go from the film. His replacement was to be series veteran Kevin Greutert, who directed Saw VI and served as editor for Saw, Saw II, Saw III, Saw IV, and Saw V. This move was due to the fact that Greutert had signed to direct Saw VII’s main competition, Paranormal Activity 2, which was to be released on the same day. Fearing low box office grosses, Lionsgate enforced Greutert’s contractual obligation to the franchise.
Kevin Greutert, along with writers Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton, attempted a comprehensive rewrite of the script a week before filming.
During the final week of prep, Tobin Bell worked with the writers to hone his character.
On the second day of filming, Kevin Greutert developed a severe cold and lost his voice for a few days.
Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan stayed on set to help Kevin Greutert implement his vision into the script.
Brian Gedge was the camera operator for previous Saw films. He took over the cinematography when David A. Armstrong decided not to return.
For the first time in Saw history, the crew left the soundstage and filmed a trap scene outdoors on Sunday, March 28, 2010. The last day of filming included another rare outdoor shoot.
Due to the slow 3D process, filming was completed in 9 weeks as opposed to the usual 6 weeks for previous instalments.
Gabby West won her role in this film through Scream Queens, just like Tanedra Howard did in Saw VI.
The scene involving the department store window trap near the beginning of the film required 400 extras.
The first eight minutes of the film were screened for a few fans and members of the press at the 2010 San Diego Comic Con.
Tobin Bell has played the Jigsaw killer nine times; seven times on film, and twice as the voice of the character for the “Saw” video games.
The garage trap was written for an earlier film in the series, but the producers felt it was “too disturbing” to show in a film. For an unknown reason they finally allowed it to be filmed.
Had to be submitted six times to obtain an “R” rating from the Major Motion Picture Association of America, to avoid an NC-17 rating.
Chester Bennington (lead singer of Linkin Park) consulted with an acting coach for his role in the film.
‘Devin Bostick’ (Brent from _’Saw VI’_) was offered the chance to reprise his role, but had to turn it down due to scheduling conflicts.
At the 2010 San Diego Comic Con the film was referred to as “Saw 3D The Traps Come Alive” at a press conference, and many tabloid’s reported this was the movies official title. The next day the producers confirmed the movie’s title was simply “Saw 3D” and “The traps come alive” was only a tagline.
The first “Saw” sequel to not have a roman numeral in its title.
This is the only movie in the franchise in which a trap occurs outside, in broad daylight.
