After the disappointing financial return of Saw VI, the studio and filmmakers decided to wrap up the horror series with Saw: The Final Chapter. Of course, the series would make its grand return seven years later; however, it’s notable that both Jigsaw and Spiral have both failed to successfully revive the once popular horror franchise. That is easily due to the help of Saw 3D. Going back to the 2010 feature, The final chapter focuses on Bobby, a man who’s cashing on the lies of being a Jigsaw survivor. The second plot of the film sees Hoffman aiming to get revenge on Jill, who tried to kill off the crooked cop in part six. Here’s the thing, Saw has never been a critical darling. None of the installments will be considered masterpieces, though the once popular franchise has truly left a mark on the horror genre overall. However, the reasoning I consider Saw: The Final Chapter as the worst in the series is due to how illogical and infuriating the plot is. Let’s start with our core character, Bobby.
First, is Bobby’s crime really worth all the torture and death that he’s had to deal with? In the mythology, Jigsaw usually goes after the scumbags and criminals who need to understand the meaning of life. Granted, the message has been muddled throughout the series as Dr. Gordon, Adam, and Jeff aren’t really criminals, but they’re in the scumbag territory. Though Jeff’s innocent daughter equally being tortured was ridiculous as well. However, Bobby is simply cashing off a lie. He hasn’t hurt or killed anybody, and at best, he’s ripped people out of $9.99. He’s not William Easton, the shady insurance agent who heartlessly let a man die. Or the criminals in Saw II. Or even the pedophile in Saw IV. Its ridiculous that this man and his team are being tortured for such a harmless lie. What’s worse? His wife – who knew nothing about the scam – suffered the consequences once Bobby failed to complete the mission. This portion of the film left a bad taste in my mouth. The movie tries to justify why Bobby and his team deserve to suffer for their dishonesty, but none of it ever registers because the consequences are far worse than the lie he’s told.
Of course, we can’t forget about another innocent casualty, Jill Tuck. I would be lying if I didn’t say that finally seeing the reverse bear trap wasn’t cool. It’s easily one of the best traps in the franchise; however, Jill Tuck didn’t deserve to be on the receiving end of it. Hoffman was being built up as this super badass serial killer, yet Tuck was nothing more than a damsel in distress. Tuck has relatively been an innocent soul throughout the series. Sure, she knew that her husband was a crazed serial killer; however, she’s done nothing to deserve the cruel ending that she got. Tuck should’ve gotten the win over Hoffman. If was frustrating to see her run like a scared dog after she stabbed Hoffman in the neck. She could’ve killed him off there. Or, Dr. Gordon could’ve saved her. It makes no sense that Jill Tuck dies horrifically then Gordon captures Hoffman. How did he know that Hoffman was there in the first place? And why wait until after he kills Jill? The twist ending felt tacked on last minute. You never get the feeling that Gordon was in on the whole Jigsaw thing because the movies leading up the finale never even gave an indication that another person was apart of Jigsaw’s crew. The film tries it’s damndest to cover its tracks during the flashback, but the whole thing rings hollow.
Saw 3D fails because it further damages the character of Jigsaw, contains bad editing, lacks a compelling storyline, and is pretty nonsensical. And this a franchise that’s built its legacy on the absurdity of their interweaving stories. On paper, the traps are fine, but I couldn’t get into them because Nina and Suzanne just didn’t deserve their gory endings. Neither did Cale. Alex – the man abusing Sidney – dying by the lawnmower blades was too unbelievable. How the hell did Hoffman, Jigsaw, or anyone get those two up at such a high angle? In theory, the trap is interesting, but the execution was sloppy. The best trap turned out to be Evan (RIP Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington) and the fellow gang of racists. Matt Gibson was a terrible character. He was annoying anytime he came onscreen, and it didn’t help that his dialogue was horrendously bad. Saw 3D is definition of a messy film. It’s definitely the worst of the franchise and the likely reason that audiences have failed to see Jigsaw and Spiral.Jigsaw
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