SAW II is the only acceptable sequel in my mind…although I do have a soft spot for IV, it’s still trash but I quite enjoy it…

No one expected this movie to be any good, least of all me…and even more unexpected was it to be as good as it was. No matter what Rotton Tomatoes says, I still really love this movie. Considering it had a lot to live up to, and even further to fall, it’s a clever, well made horror film.

The traps follow the tradition of it’s predecessor as far as doing an excellent job of inserting the audience into the situation…and although they were far less realistic of situations than the first film, they were just within the rhealm of reasonable belief for films…unlike those that would follow it. For my money, the worst one was the pit of needles…yeesh. 

One great thing I appreciated in this film was a particular scene that not only continued a brisk pace, but offered an entirely reasonable reaction by a character. About three quarters of the way through the film, one of the characters wanders into a room, finds an envelop with a tape, and immediately disregards it and tosses it aside, plunging wrist deep into a trap. In a movie with so many characters being put to the test, I’m glad they didn’t make us sit through too many tapes and traps. It would have killed the pace of the entire movie, thankfully that wasn’t the case. And it was totally within the character of this person to throw the tape aside. They were dying, they saw a needle, they didn’t care about any game. All they wanted was the needle that was said to give them life, and therefore plunged into something without any regard of what might await them. They were bullheaded and desperate. It makes sense AND serves a purpose for the film as a whole. The fact that they did this in a horror franchise sequel astounds me. It shows a level of dedication and care that you just don’t get in these kinds of movies.

As for the twist in the end…I have to tip my hat to the film makers. It was clever and unexpected without being ridiculous. 

Ok…so lets talk about the rest of the sequels. This seems a good as time as any. 

They blow. They just blow. I really don’t see why people continue to go to the theater to see them. You’re only supporting trash, reinforcing the Hollywood mentality that “familiar is always more profitable than original.”

3…was tired and absurd.
4…was so forgettable I can’t tell you a thing about it.
5…was entertaining, but wildly over the top.
6…was equally forgettable as 4.
7…made me want to punch several babies it was so bad.

So allow me to make a plea to everyone out there. STOP SUPPORTING SH*TTY CINEMA.

I don’t care about your morbid curiosity or your “it’s so bad it’s funny” events with friends…save that for rentals that don’t effect the outcome of more sequels. Just stop going to the movies and these things will just go away and money can be spent on legitimate film and better movies in general.

So, no more TRANSFORMERS, no more PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, no more SAW movies…GOT IT???