Saw has returned! Tobin Bell is back as the famed serial killer and Saw X will explore events that took place before his infamous death in Saw III. The franchise burst onto the scene in 2004; Which means Saw has been in the mainstream for nearly 20 years. Admittedly, the series is overly convoluted, though that’s the charm of the ongoing saga. However, the bread and butter for Saw is their traps.
You can’t have a Saw film without traps. There’s certainly no shortage of them in the past nine films. This list will narrow down the five worst traps from Saw to Spiral. Which traps stand out as the franchise’s worst? These five were rather lackluster and short on tension and drama compared to the others. Let’s get started with the first trap.
The Pig Vat (Saw III)
Not exactly the worst trap on the list due to it’s symbolism. The trap was more about Jeff and his need to let go of the past. Character-wise, it helped Jeff develop past his grief because he was able to burn his son’s possessions and save the judge. Sadly, that characterization was undone in the next scene. Still, it was a big moment for Jeff, but the trap was rather tame by Saw standards. The Frozen Room is also pretty tame, but there’s a genuine elegance and beauty that makes the trap stand out in a good way. The Pig Vat lacked any of that. It didn’t have much tension and being suffocated in a vat of Pig slop just isn’t impressive visually.
Electric Bathtub (Saw V)
Saw V isn’t the most highly regarded entry in the series. The feature tried to recapture the magic of Saw II, but the biggest issue is the lack of character development. None of the core cast came across as likable, so their deaths didn’t mean too much. The deaths in the film weren’t all that great, but the electric bathtub one was easily one of the weaker traps in the series.
It was obvious what Jigsaw was going for. But the execution meant that the victims had to be selfish imbeciles, which did no good for the story and character. When the audience is two steps ahead, that means the scene lacks any true drama and tension. It was just plain stupid for the victims to not truly think about Jigsaw’s words and the subtext behind them. The trap itself wasn’t anything special. A forgettable trap overall.
The Lawnmower Trap (Saw: The Final Chapter)
Saw: The Final Chapter just wasn’t good. The punishment for Bobby, Joyce, and his associates were ten times worse than the crime. Though there are some strong and gory traps in this installment, the ugliness of the plot overshadows the entire film. However, the lawnmower trap is simply unbelievable. On paper, the idea of the Lawnmower trap is sound: suspend two people over dozens of lawnmowers turned upside down. The execution was just terrible. Alex and Sidney were hosted way up in the air at an unbelievable distance. Even worse, how could Sidney get down from the trap that’s suspended so high up in the air? There are too many illogical issues with the lawnmower trap that make it too over-the-top.
Chain Hangers (Jigsaw)
This trap was more on the bland side. Jigsaw is arguably the best-looking film in the series, and there are some solid traps in here as well. Chain Hangers was a rather simple trap, but it lacked any true drama and tension because the solution was too easy. If Ryan wasn’t able to easily inject all three needles into Carly then Chain Hangers wouldn’t been on the list. It would’ve given her character more of a challenge to overcome the odds and it would’ve been a nail-biter to see if she would’ve been able to save the day. This trap simply lacked the dramatic tension and Carly’s death was nothing to write home about.
Glass Grinder (Spiral)
This one is in the class of the lawnmower, but somehow worse. I appreciate that the writers tried to differentiate the traps from Jigsaw, but none of the traps in Spiral are particularly great. The Glass Grinder is needlessly convoluted and bland. Spiral was trying to mimic Seven, and though the traps were more story-based, the execution was very clunky and awkward. It was a headscratcher that William would let Peter live in the first place since he’s the man who killed his father. The end result doesn’t equal a memorable death either. A bad trap all around.
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