Saw II

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This article is about the horror film. For the Aphex Twin album, see Selected Ambient Works Volume II

Saw II

Saw II film poster
Directed by Darren Lynn Bousman
Produced by Gregg Hoffman
Oren Koules
Mark Burg
Written by Leigh Whannell
Darren Lynn Bousman
Starring Donnie Wahlberg
Tobin Bell
Shawnee Smith
Erik Knudsen
Franky G
Glenn Plummer
Emmanuelle Vaugier
Beverley Mitchell
Timothy Burd
Dina Meyer
Lyriq Bent
Noam Jenkins
Tony Nappo
Music by Charlie Clouser
Maynard James Keenan
Distributed by Lions Gate Entertainment
Release date(s) October 28, 2005
Running time 93 min.
Country Flag of the United States United States
Language English
Budget $4,000,000 (est.)
Preceded by Saw
Followed by Saw III
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Saw II is a 2005 horror film, and the sequel to the 2004 Saw. The film (apart from external shots) was filmed in one building over the span of 25 days. It was released in most parts of the world on October 28, 2005, but not released in Australia until December 1, 2005. Darren Lynn Bousman took over directing duties, and also co-wrote the story's script with Leigh Whannell, the original film's co-writer.

The film features the antagonist of the previous film, the Jigsaw Killer, finally being apprehended, but trapping the arresting officer in one of his own games while showing another "game" of eight people in progress at the same time. It also explores the character's back story, explaining why he became a serial killer.

Saw II film is currently #16 on Bravo's Even Scarier Movie Moments. Following the film's opening weekend gross of $31.5 million, Lions Gate Films commissioned Saw III, released on October 27, 2006.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The film opens with one of Jigsaw's victims ensnared in one of his deadly traps. The man's name is revealed to be Michael (by Jigsaw), and he is trapped inside the Death Mask, which is described by Jigsaw as a Venus flytrap. Like always, Jigsaw gives his victims a hint as to where he has concealed the solution to disabling the trap. For Michael, before Jigsaw captured him, he put him to sleep for a while, and surgically implanted the key to the trap behind his right eye. With this, Michael is faced with the choice of cutting out his eye with a scalpel to retrieve the key, or let the timer run out, therefore activating the mask with spikes protruding out of it on both sides. After trying to dig through his eye, but not being able to bring himself to do it, Michael screams for help, and gives up. The mask activates, jamming the spikes into his face, killing him instantly.

After an argument with his rebellious teenage son Daniel, Detective Eric Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg) is called to the scene of yet another death perpetrated by the Jigsaw Killer (Tobin Bell). Following clues from the scene, he is able to trace Jigsaw's lair to an abandoned steel factory. In a control room therein a set of computer monitors shows several people trapped in a mysterious house, among them Daniel and Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith), Jigsaw's only known survivor. Jigsaw himself is present in the factory, though considerably weakened by cancer. He promises that Matthews will see his son in a "safe, secure state" if he will converse with him patiently.

The story now intercuts between Jigsaw's lair as Matthews talks with him in an attempt to buy time while the video signal is traced, and the captives in the house trying to secure antidotes. Obi (Tim Burd), an accessory to the other victims' kidnappings, is burned alive while attempting to retrieve two antidotes in a furnace. The group later finds a pit filled with thousands of hypodermic syringes, with a key to an antidote hidden within. Xavier, the intended victim, throws Amanda into the pit rather than search for the key himself. Amanda retrieves the key, but Xavier fumbles with it and fails to unlock the door to the antidote before its timer runs out.

Meanwhile, Jigsaw explains his evolution into a criminal to Matthews and reveals to him that the victims trapped in the house are criminals that Matthews has framed, and that his son is in danger should his identity be discovered. Matthews, growing impatient with Jigsaw's philosophical ramblings, trashes the models and plans but fails to move Jigsaw.

Xavier, having abandoned the others, realizes that one number of the combination to the safe has been written on the back each of the victims' necks. After killing Jonas, he begins stalking the remaining four, who have been made aware that Daniel is the son of their arresting officer. Laura soon dies from gas exposure, and Addison's arms become trapped in a glass box containing razors.

Matthews, meanwhile, loses control and violently assaults Jigsaw, eventually forcing him to take him to the house at gunpoint. As they depart, the tech team discovers the signal and follows it. In the house, Xavier pursues Amanda and Daniel through a hidden basement, which leads to the washroom of the first film, where Daniel then collapses. Amanda remarks that Xavier has no way of learning his own number, and he slices off a piece of skin from the back of his neck to read it. After he threatens Amanda, Daniel, who is revealed to have been playing possum, cuts Xavier's throat open with a hacksaw.

The SWAT team arrives at the location of the video signal, but it is not the same house that has been shown on the monitors in Jigsaw's lair; the events in the house took place on a previous occasion, and were broadcast from tape. Matthews then enters the bathroom, now empty, and is injected in the leg by an unknown assailant and quickly loses consciousness. At the abandoned lair, a timer expires and a safe opens, revealing a hyperventilating Daniel inside wearing an oxygen mask.

Matthews awakens to find himself chained to a pipe. An audio tape lying next to him reveals that Amanda has put him there. In a series of flashbacks, we learn that Amanda has become Jigsaw's protégé. Amanda appears in the door and says "Game over," before closing the bathroom door, Matthews screaming threats and abuse; though different characters, the scene is otherwise identical to the ending of the first film. Outside the house, a badly beaten Jigsaw slowly forms a smile.

[edit] Cast

Actor Role
Donnie Wahlberg Detective Eric Matthews
Shawnee Smith Amanda Young
Tobin Bell John Kramer / Jigsaw
Emmanuelle Vaugier Addison
Franky G Xavier
Dina Meyer Detective Allison Kerry
Beverley Mitchell Laura
Glenn Plummer Jonas
Lyriq Bent Lieutenant Rigg
Timothy Burd Obi
Tony Nappo Gus
Erik Knudsen Daniel Matthews
Noam Jenkins Michael
Kelly Jones SWAT Pete

[edit] Critical reaction & Box office

Even more so than in the previous film, critics found Jigsaw's diabolic "games" to require a large amount of planning and fortuitous timing in order to succeed, causing some to liken his murderous schemes to Rube Goldberg machines.[1][2][3][4]Tobin Bell addressed some of these criticisms by saying, "My sense is that [Jigsaw] is so detail oriented that I think he thinks in terms of worst case scenario. I think he’s a very good judge of character, so his sense that, for example, that Detective Matthews was going to play right into his trap, which he did, was right on. Now, it seems to me that he’s got plan 2 always in place. And there’s probably been a number of plan 2s. I mean, we’ve only seen three movies. Maybe there are six more somewhere where he failed, where something didn’t play out."[5]

According to Rotten Tomatoes, the aggregate rating of this film was only 35%, with several reviewers revolted by the explicit gore and torture scenes.[6] Of the few critics who provided positive reviews, some remarked that it was a worthy follow-up, providing plenty of what fans of the first expected.[7] As with its predecessor, however, the film garnered far more positive reception with the public than with critics. It currently holds a rating of 74% by users at Rotten Tomatoes, and a score of 6.9 at the Internet Movie Database.[8]

[edit] Box office

Made for only $5 million (not including a $20 million P&A budget), Saw II grossed $153 million worldwide, which includes $87 million in the United States.

[edit] Soundtrack

Main article: Saw II (soundtrack)

[edit] Unrated Edition

Saw II has been released on a standard as well as a "Special Edition" uncut DVD. Differences in this edition include:

  • When the police are entering the Wilson Steel warehouse, three short cuts are shown of Jigsaw upstairs, realizing the police have arrived. When he realizes this, he calmly goes back to what he was working on.
  • When the police are approaching Jigsaw several scenes are added where he is eating Cheerios (as stated in the commentary on the original DVD).
  • Jigsaw has a few extra lines of dialogue with Detective Matthews, mentioning that he has "wiped the slate clean", and that most people are merely "sleepwalking".
  • When Obi is trapped in the oven, he attempts to break the glass on the far side as he is burning alive.
  • The scene of Amanda searching the syringe pit is extended by about a minute; this minute does not consist of Amanda thrashing around, but is mostly taken up by her sitting motionless inside, afraid to move.
  • In the bathroom, Charlie Clouser's score begins as Xavier begins cutting off his skin, and continues until he dies from his throat being slashed.
  • The opening scene with "The Venus Headtrap" is extended and the song "Irresponsible Hate Anthem (Venus Headtrap Mix)" is playing in the background.
  • The scene where Matthews is beating up Jigsaw is extended with one extra punch.

This is the shortest unrated version in the series at 95 minutes, whereas Saw III's unrated version is close to two hours.

As with the first SAW, there is an easter egg called "SAW 2 in 62". It has three "takes", the first one is using clay figures modeled after the characters in the film, the second replaces the character with common materials, and the third one uses photos from the film which are animated.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Saw 2 not as sharp as original
  2. ^ CNN.com - EW reviews: Bad 'Weather,' grim 'Saw' - Oct 28, 2005
  3. ^ Current Movie Reviews, Independent Movies - Film Threat
  4. ^ http://www.filmgecko.com/saw-ii/] [http://www.variety.com/review/VE1117928622?categoryid=31&cs=1
  5. ^ Arrow in the Head News: INT: Tobin Bell
  6. ^ Saw II Movie Review, DVD Release - Filmcritic.com
  7. ^ 'Saw II' - MOVIE REVIEW - Los Angeles Times - calendarlive.com
  8. ^ Saw II (2005)

[edit] External links

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Saw series
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Saw (short) • Saw • II • III • IV • V • VI
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Saw • Saw II • Saw III • Saw IV
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Preceded by
Doom		 Box office number-one films of 2005 (USA)
October 30, 2005		 Succeeded by
Chicken Little