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Saw IV

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Saw IV (2007)

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18 %
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Reviews Counted:68

Fresh:12

Rotten:56

Average Rating:3.7/10

Consensus: Saw IV is more disturbing than compelling, with material already seen in the prior installments.

Runtime: 1 hr 48 mins

Genre: Horror/Suspense

US Box Office: $63,270,259

Synopsis: The fourth SAW film takes fans into uncharted waters. Now that John/Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) is dead, screenwriters Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan (writers of the Project Greenlight-produced FEAST)... The fourth SAW film takes fans into uncharted waters. Now that John/Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) is dead, screenwriters Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan (writers of the Project Greenlight-produced FEAST) give us Jigsaw's "origin" story--finally showing us why he does what he does. Along they way, they still find time to work in the usual dose of elaborate Rube Goldberg-like torture devices and heaps of MPAA-defying gore in what plays like an extreme version of CSI. During his (extremely graphic) autopsy, Jigsaw's final tape (swallowed in SAW III) is found in his stomach. Promising that his work will continue despite his passing, his message sets off a series of grisly tasks for anxious SWAT team leader Rigg (Lyriq Bent), who is given 90 minutes to rescue detectives Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg) and Hoffman (Costas Mandylor), who are to be dispatched via blocks of ice and high voltage wires. Trailing Rigg are FBI agents Strahm (Scott Patterson of GILMORE GIRLS) and Perez (Athena Karkanis), who get some unexpected blood on their hands along the way. A series of flashbacks details a pivotal event between Jigsaw and his girlfriend, Jill (1980s beauty Betsy Russell, PRIVATE SCHOOL), which inspired him to devote the remainder of his life to the creation of his signature puzzles. Darren Lynn Bousman, director of the previous two sequels, returns once again to ensure that the series retains its trademark desaturated look. Though viewers starting with this installment may find the brief glimpses of characters from the previous films confusing, fans should be pleased with how the films link together. They are also sure to appreciate that, like FRIDAY THE 13th carrying on sans Jason in PART IV: A NEW BEGINNING, the death of Jigsaw won't keep the franchise from evolving into SAW V and beyond. [More]

Starring: Tobin Bell, Scott Patterson, Betsy Russell, Costas Mandylor

Starring: Tobin Bell, Scott Patterson, Betsy Russell, Costas Mandylor, Lyriq Bent, Justin Louis, Athena Karkanis, Simon Reynolds

Director: Darren Lynn Bousman

Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
Screenwriter: Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan
Story: Patrick Melton, Marcus Dunstan, Thomas Fenton
Producer: Gregg Hoffman, Mark Burg, Oren Koules
Composer: Charlie Clouser
Studio: Lions Gate Films

[See More Credits]

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Reviews for Saw IV

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61 - 72 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

"Saw IV" should be tossed into the business end of 1988's "Woodchipper Massacre."

Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | comment Comment
10/26/07
Christopher Smith
Christopher Smith
Bangor Daily News (Maine)

It's a been-there, done-that sort of sequel, but it's still more creative than most of what passes for Hollywood horror these days.

Full Review Source: FEARnet | comment 10 Comments
10/26/07
Scott Weinberg
Scott Weinberg
FEARnet

Even fans of good, old-fashioned, onscreen torture will find themselves rolling their eyes at the twists and turns in this impossibly convoluted story.

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment 2 Comments
10/26/07
Adam Graham
Adam Graham
Detroit News

As far as fourth installments in a series, Saw IV is quite impressive.

Full Review Source: Film School Rejects | comment 1 Comment
10/26/07
Kevin Carr
Kevin Carr
Film School Rejects

Boasting more posthumous recordings than Tupac, Jigsaw should have spent time devising clever new traps instead of buying Radio Shack's entire inventory of tape recorders.

Full Review Source: Metromix.com | comment 1 Comment
10/26/07
Matt Pais
Matt Pais
Metromix.com

Easily the worst entry in the series, and the first one that undeniably feels like a sloppily thrown-together rush job.

Full Review Source: DustinPutman.com | comment 5 Comments
10/26/07
Dustin Putman
Dustin Putman
DustinPutman.com

By far the best installment of this cringingly moronic odyssey of pain. There's something to be said about leaving a theater with only a mild cultural headache instead of a knee-buckling case of cinematic depression.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment 8 Comments
10/26/07
Brian Orndorf
Brian Orndorf
eFilmCritic.com

The need to incorporate familiar characters and icons from the earlier films, together with flashbacks that flesh out Jigsaw’s pre-'puppet master' past, simply leads to an irritating series of creative dead ends. Truly, a hack-Saw.

Full Review Source: Time Out | comment Comment
10/26/07
Nigel Floyd
Nigel Floyd
Time Out

It is impossible to take a movie seriously when the movie obviously doesn't care if you do or not.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
10/26/07
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

...parts of it are good, and the rest really feels like cynical photocopying.

Full Review Source: LYTRules.com | comment Comment
10/26/07
Luke Y. Thompson
Luke Y. Thompson
LYTRules.com

Two of the more degrading and debasing hours of big-screen "entertainment" that you are likely to endure in this lifetime.

Full Review Source: eFilmCritic.com | comment 1 Comment
10/26/07
Peter Sobczynski
Peter Sobczynski
eFilmCritic.com

With Saw IV, the pieces have all come together and [it's] the best of the lot.

Full Review Source: Horror.com | comment 10 Comments
10/25/07
Staci Layne Wilson
Staci Layne Wilson
Horror.com
 
 
61 - 72 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4
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Latest News for Saw IV

October 20, 2009: See Saw with Alex, Day 4: Saw IV
Suspecting they would have large significance in later sequels, I yesterday refrained from commenting on Saw III's plethora of useless shots. The camera's fixation on Agent... More...

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March 05, 2008: Scott Patterson Talks Saw V
These days, Scott Patterson is known to fans of the CW's Aliens in America as the perpetually befuddled Gary Tolchuck -- but those of you who remember him as Agent Strahm in Saw... More...

February 19, 2008: Weinsteins' Hellraiser Remake Has Its Writers
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