FAQ for
Saw III (2006) More at IMDbPro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Saw III can be found here.

Saw III is the third movie in the Saw series, preceded by Saw (2004) and Saw II (2005), all of which stem from an original screenplay by screenwriters Leigh Whannell and James Wan. Whannell also wrote the screenplay for Saw III. It was followed by Saw IV (2007), Saw V (2008), and Saw VI (2009).

Five. Tobin Bell appears again as John "The Jigsaw Killer" Kramer. Also back are the characters of Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith), Detective Allison Kerry (Dina Meyer), Eric Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg), and Swat Commander Rigg (Lyriq Bent). Adam Faulkner (Leigh Whannell) (from Saw) also appears in a flashback.

Immediately. The opening scenes of Saw III show Detective Eric Matthews still trapped in the bathroom where Amanda left him shackled to the plumbing at the end of Saw II. With only a flashlight to see in the dark, Eric is able to see the leftovers from the previous incident in the bathroom (from Saw), that is, Dr Gordon's foot and the bodies of Adam Faulkner and Zep Hindle. Realizing that he is going to die if he doesn't get out of the bathroom, Matthews pounds his own foot to a mash so that he can slip it out of the chain. The film then jumps to another incident in which Detective Alison Kerry is investigating Jigsaw's latest victim, Troy (J. LaRose), whose body was blown apart when he failed to break free of the chains that pierced his body and held him prisoner. She also notices that Jigsaw's game rules appear to have changed such that the door to Troy's chamber was welded shut. Even if he had escaped the chains in time, there was no way for him to escape the bomb. That night, Kerry is kidnapped and forced to play another of Jigsaw's games. Her rib cage is attached to a device that can be opened by obtaining a key that has been placed in a beaker of acid. When she fails to get the key in time and unlock the device, her rib cage is torn apart. Finally, the movie jumps to present time and Jigsaw's newest game.

John/Jigsaw is on his death bed. He has Dr Lynn Denlon (Bahar Soomekh) kidnapped and imprisoned in a collar loaded with five shotgun shells. She is informed that it is her duty to keep Jigsaw alive long enough for him to watch a second game in which Jeff Reinhart (Angus Macfadyen), whose eight-year old son was killed by a drunk driver, has become obsessed with revenge against those who were responsible. His test is to make his way through a meat-packing factory where the three people he holds most responsible for his son's death have been imprisoned: (1) bystander Danica Scott (Debra McCabe) who did nothing to help, (2) Judge Halden (Barry Flatman) who sentenced the driver to only six months, and (3) Timothy Young (Mpho Koaho), the driver. Jeff must choose whether to save them or to exact his revenge by letting them die.

Jigsaw makes it through the trepanning operation, thanks to Lynn's skill. While semiconscious, he professes out loud his love for a woman named Jill. After his vitals have stabilized, he asks Amanda to leave the room so that he can speak alone with Lynn. Amanda takes this to mean that Jigsaw cares more for Lynn than for her, so she goes off to brood. Meanwhile, Jeff has made it through all three tests and is making his way through the meat-packing factory, looking for the exit. As Lynn confesses to Jigsaw that she now has learned to appreciate her husband, Amanda suddenly bursts into a room with a gun. She points the gun at Lynn, even as Jigsaw explains to her that, although Lynn means nothing to him, she means everything to Amanda. Amanda refuses to believe it. She shoots Lynn just as Jeff walks into the room. Having found a gun on his way out, Jeff fires on Amanda. As Amanda lay dying, Jigsaw explains that Jeff is actually Lynn's husband. All that has happened so far, from Saw to Saw III has been a game with Amanda. Jigsaw had hoped to make her a worthy disciple to continue his work after his death, but her attempt to kill Lynn out of jealousy, as well as for changing the rules of the game so as to make the traps inescapable, prove to him only that she is just another murderer, and he can't abide murderers. As Lynn lay dying, Jigsaw gives Jeff a chance to save her. He reveals a table full of instruments with which Jeff can kill him but asks him simply to be forgiving. Instead, Jeff picks up a circular saw and slices through Jigsaw's throat. As Jigsaw dies, he plays a tape explaining that this was Jeff's final test but that he has failed it. The tape ends with Jigsaw offering Jeff one more game for a chance to find out the whereabouts of his daughter Corbett (Niamh Wilson). Jigsaw then dies, the bullets in Lynn's collar are fired, and the chamber door swings closed.

In the USA three versions have been released: The theatrical version, the unrated version and an unrated Director's Cut. The theatrical version was trimmed down in 132 scenes (most of them cuts due to violence to secure the r-rating). The theatrical version has also been released on DVD as well as an unrated-version which includes the scenes that were cut from the theatrical version. A few months later a director's cut version was released. It includes all scenes from the unrated-version but also offers some new plot scenes and an alternate ending. A detailed comparison between the theatrical version and the unrated version can be found here. A comparison between the unrated version and the unrated Director's Cut can be found here here.