Saw V (2008)

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:

Following Jigsaw's grisly demise, Mark Hoffman, the final apprentice to the serial killer is deigned a hero. Meanwhile, Agent Strahm is tested and follows all the leads he can get until it boils down to a gruesome and bone-crushing finale. |

Plot Keywords:

Serial Killer | Jigsaw | Decapitated Body | Flashback | Death Of Sister

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)

MPAA:

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

Runtime:

92 min | 95 min (unrated director's cut)

Country:

USA | Canada

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS | DTS (Dolby 5.1)

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 | Iceland:18

Filming Locations:

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

Twisted Pictures

Trivia:

The guillotine blades in the first trap are all shaped like a V's, the numeral for "Saw V".

Goofs:

Continuity: In the room with the mounted razor traps, a timer on the wall is shown to begin counting down from 15:00. However, a few seconds later Charles points to the timer, and it is shown with 15:00 on its display again. The beeping heard once the timer has begun also stops in the next few shots.

Quotes:

Mark Hoffman: What do you want from me!
Jigsaw: I want to know if you have what it takes to survive.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire: (#7.38)" (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.