Synopsis – A sick and desperate John travels to Mexico for a risky and experimental medical procedure in hopes of a miracle cure for his cancer only to discover the entire operation is a scam to defraud the most vulnerable.

My Take – Released in 2004, Saw was not only a massive financial success that launched the careers of filmmakers James Wan (Insidious, The Conjuring) and Leigh Whannell (Upgrade, The Invisible Man), but also gave birth to a gruesome horror franchise and cemented the status of its main antagonist, serial killer John “Jigsaw” Kramer, as a classic horror film villain.

While the sequels that followed never measured up to the original’s one room setting and its scary little scenario, it’s safe to say that the series’ reception, particularly after Saw II (2005), Saw III (2006) and Saw IV (2007), rapidly went into a downward spiral.

The decision to kill Jigsaw in third installment was fitting, given the franchise obsession with shock value, but it also lured the writers into an impossible trap they then struggled to get out of. Leading to each ensuing sequel be flashback-heavy, filling in an increasingly convoluted backstory, and making each subsequent instead feel more gimmicky.

Even an honest attempt to swerve away from the main timeline with the Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson starring spinoff called Spiral (2021), which tried to play off more like a hardcore detective thriller with a different villain, failed to win over the casual audience, forget devoted fans.

Now, twenty years after we first saw Cary Elwes’ Dr. Lawrence Gordon hack off his own foot, director Kevin Greutert (Saw VI, Saw 3D) and writers Josh Stolberg (Spiral) and Pete Goldfinger (Jigsaw) are back with a tenth installment, which not only is the longest Saw film to date, but in a surprising turn of events, is also the series’ best entry yet since the original trio.

Serving as a sequel to the original film and a prequel to Saw II, the film has more of an emotional depth than letting blood and gore take over. Make no mistake the traps are still on full display and Jigsaw still has full intent to showcase the true evils of humanity.

But the main reason the film is better than almost all its previous entries is because it sticks to the core ideas of the franchise that made it a success in the first place while also infusing it with a surprising level of heart that the series is seldom known for, rendered together in a manner that feels both simple yet effective.

Taking place sometime after the events of Saw, the story follows John Kramer (Tobin Bell) who is told that, due to his advanced brain cancer, he has only months to live. Full resigned himself to the terminal nature of his disease, Kramer spends his time in and out of a cancer support group and taking care of his remaining chores that is until he is inspired by the seemingly miraculous recovery of a fellow patient named Henry Kessler (Michael Beach).

Upon insistence, Kessler advises Kramer to get in touch with Dr. Cecilia Pederson (Synnøve Macody Lund), who operates an off-the-grid operation due to constant threat from large pharmaceutical companies. Promising a procedure that would allegedly cure his cancer, Kramer heads towards Mexico City to go through an experimental treatment and gets quickly acquainted with fellow members of the set up – Valentina (Paulette Hernández), Diego (Joshua Okamoto), Mateo (Octavio Hinojosa) and Gabriela (Renata Vaca).

But once the procedure is over, Kramer discovers that it he was instead part of a cruel scam, and with the help of his accomplice Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith), vows to teach the fraudsters an unforgettable lesson.

This set up is an interesting way back into the series and while the latter sequels had become vaguer and often pettier about why subjects were being tested, there’s a much clearer plan here and given how abhorrent the con is, a stronger dramatic pull. While the film definitely has the gruesome goods expected of a Saw film however, what makes it really good is the unexpected amount of heart.

Unlike any of its predecessors, it’s very much John’s story, it’s all from his point of view, and we’re almost made to feel a degree of sympathy for him. It’s a personal tale of revenge that’s oddly wholesome, using its concept to make its traps and victim’s suffering enjoyable viewing.

The victims here are framed as some of the most deserving in the series, heightening the film’s moral ambiguity and intensifying the notions of retribution among viewers. The motivations of John Kramer and whether they are justified or not has always been a great discussion among horror lovers and ‘Saw’ fans alike. This film is very aware of that. It makes multiple references to this debate and they are done in a way that is both slightly tongue in cheek and also deadly serious coming out of the mouth of Kramer.

Though I am sure the point isn’t to make Kramer seem like a righteous man, the film leans harder into his moral code than ever before. What he does and how he does it is not right, but it is what makes Jigsaw an interesting horror character. If you’re innocent, you don’t have to fight for your life.

Of course, the traps here are inventive, gross and believable, each of them more gnarly than the last. Even Billy the puppet, an icon of the Jigsaw character, makes its presence felt.

Tobin Bell delivers yet another excellent performance. At 81, Bell reprises his iconic role as John Kramer with remarkable vitality, maintaining the character’s haunting grip on the audience with his enduring portrayal. The same goes for Shawnee Smith who makes Amanda’s return likable.

In other roles, Synnøve Macody Lund, Steven Brand, Renata Vaca, Joshua Okamoto, Octavio Hinojosa, Paulette Hernández and Michael Beach bring decent turns. On the whole, ‘Saw X’ is a surprisingly satisfying resurgence of one of the best horror franchises of all time.

Directed – Kevin Greutert

Starring – Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith, Synnøve Macody Lund

Rated – R

Run Time – 118 minutes