Saw V (2008)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

David Hackl

Writers:

Patrick Melton (screenplay) &
Marcus Dunstan (screenplay)

Release Date:

24 October 2008 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

You won't believe how it ends.

Plot:

Detective Hoffman and Agent Strahm clash as they each investigate the apparent continuation of the Jigsaw murders. |

Plot Keywords:

Detective | Jigsaw | Serial Killer | Violence | Arson

Cast

Tobin Bell	...	Jigsaw / John Kramer
Costas Mandylor	...	Mark Hoffman
Scott Patterson	...	Agent Peter Strahm
Betsy Russell	...	Jill
Julie Benz	...	Brit
Meagan Good	...	Luba
Mark Rolston	...	Dan Erickson
Carlo Rota	...	Charles
Greg Bryk	...	Mallick
Laura Gordon	...	Ashley
Joris Jarsky	...	Seth
Mike Butters	...	Paul
Al Sapienza	...	Chief of Police
Mike Realba	...	Detective Fisk
Lyriq Bent	...	Rigg

Also Known As:

Décadence V (Canada: French title) (dubbed version)
El juego del miedo 5 (Mexico) (Peru) [es]
El juego del miedo V (Argentina) (Venezuela) [es]
Пила 5 (Russia) [ru]
Jogos Mortais V (Brazil) [pt]
Pila V (Poland) (poster title) [pl]
Saag V (Estonia) [et]
Saw 5 - A Sucessão (Portugal) [pt]
Saw V (Greece) [el]
Saw V (France) [fr]
Slagalica strave 5 (Croatia) [hr]
Testere V (Turkey: Turkish title) [tr]

MPAA:

Rated R for sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, language and brief nudity.

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #44624) | UK:18 | Australia:MA | Singapore:R21 | Ireland:16 | Canada:18A | New Zealand:R18 | Hong Kong:III | France:-16 | Norway:18 | Argentina:16 | Brazil:18 | Belgium:KNT | Portugal:M/18 | Switzerland:18 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:18 (canton of Vaud) | Sweden:15 | South Korea:18 | Japan:R-15 | Australia:R (director's cut) | Australia:R (DVD) | Germany:18 (uncut) (theatrical release) | Netherlands:16 | South Africa:16LV | Ireland:18 (DVD rating) | Philippines:R-18 (MTRCB) | Finland:K-18 | Germany:18 (cut) (DVD release) | Germany:Not Rated (SPIO/JK) (unrated version) (uncut) | Germany:Not Rated (SPIO/JK) (uncut) (DVD release) | Austria:16

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Twisted Pictures

Trivia:

The role of Dan Erickson was written for 'William Forsythe'. He declined the offer due to scheduling conflicts.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: The tank around Agent Strahm's head did not necessarily need to be airtight. It was secured in an upright position by two metal bars attached to the ceiling, and could therefore have had an air hole in the top panel that would not have prevented death by drowning.

Quotes:

Jigsaw: Vengeance changes a person.
Jigsaw: It can make them realize what they're capable of.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Jon Hamm/Coldplay (#34.6)" (2008)

A stumble, but still on mission.

I watched Saw V with a good opening night crowd here in Sydney. I've enjoyed all of the Saw films, predictably liking some episodes a lot more than others, and Saw V is, again, very watchable, with some intense moments and no shortage of grisliness. But I'd still say it's the weakest entry in the series to date. The trouble is that the main narrative addition for this episode, which has to sustain half the running time, turns out to be a dramatically weak one. I don't think a Saw film ever previously failed to create excitement or new meaning via one of its big twisty revelations, but Saw V's add next to nothing. The knowledge gained doesn't force any re-evaluation of the past events it concerns; you just see and know a bit more about them, and to no great effect, except for the fact that Tobin Bell's performance is always compelling, maybe even more so when he's talking to people who aren't stuck in Jigsaw's deathtraps.

The Saw films have demonstrated an unfeasibly high success rate over time in terms of pulling off twist after twist and having them nearly all hit home. With this track record, it seems inevitable that there'd be a significant stumble at some point. They've never been bulletproof films (and thrillers are the genre that are hardest to bulletproof), but I'd say Saw V is definitely the stumble. In spite of this, it still keeps in enough with the series in general for me to be ready for Saw VI in 2009 - which I hope will be better work.