MOVIE REVIEW: ‘Jigsaw’ a worthy, not obligatory, addition to ‘Saw’ universe

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

The Jigsaw killer may be the most undead movie murderer in the history of horror given that even though the character was killed in “Saw III,” Jigsaw returned via flashbacks in four subsequent “Saw” entries up until “Saw 3D: The Final Chapter” in 2010.

And even with John “Jigsaw” Kramer dispatched by a particularly gnarly throat-slitting in Part III, his “work” was carried on in the latter films thanks to traps he had set up earlier or, as we came to find out, due to acolytes in the form of Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor), Amanda (Shawnee Smith) and later Dr. Larry Gordon (Cary Elwes) who, despite being among Jigsaw’s first victims in “Saw I,” returned in “3D” to lock Hoffman into the “final” trap and thus close the curtain on it all.

Or so we thought.

For those who may not recall, a new “Saw” flick became a vaunted Halloween tradition in the aughts, consecutively ruling the October horror box office each annum for seven seasons. But by the “3D” exercise, it was clear there was really nowhere to take the franchise. Remember, by that point, the film’s villain had already been dead for not one, not two, not three, not four, but five films in the franchise but still found ways to mangle the unlucky far after his mortal remains were buried — thus making Jigsaw the most recalcitrant killer in film not named Freddy or Jason.

And one who, it must be said, was not immortal.

It’s little wonder filmmakers continued to find ways to keep Jigsaw around given that Tobin Bell, the dark-eyed, steely voiced character actor who portrayed him for the better back of the last decade, is really why we continued to show up. Sure, the gruesome booby traps Jigsaw set up for his “games” were ostensibly the reason to return each time for yet more splatter porn, but without Mr. Bell, there could be no more “Saw” universe.

And so after seven “Saw”-less years, the games return in “Jigsaw,” which has arrived just in time for Halloween 2017. Jigsaw/John has indeed returned, with screenwriters Pete Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg employing a narrative trick to bring Mr. Bell back in the flesh in a way that is not precisely a cheat even though it is definitely somewhat deceitful.

But never mind. You’re here for the traps, and “Jigsaw” returns to the old “Saw” bones formula of strangers trapped together in a madhouse of horror, with Jigsaw’s horrid puzzles there to be unlocked with grisly keys that require his victims to deliver their pounds of flesh. As in the series’ best entries, Jigsaw’s prey hold dark secrets, and his off-screen voice — still in the form of actual audiotapes, showing that even as technology evolves, the great villains tend to stick to their MOs (just ask Harvey Weinstein) — commands the strangers to “make their choice” between maiming themselves to live or certain death if they do nothing.

Jigsaw’s judgment, such as it were, continues to be that he is jurist and executioner, for he needs no jury concerning the misdeeds of his victims, and punishes them solely on his own twisted authority. Each of the strangers in “Jigsaw” has done something for which their tormenter believes they must suffer. Let the games begin.

Meanwhile, in the B storyline, Jigsaw’s victims are discovered on the streets of the still-never-named city for which Toronto has stood in since the series commenced 13 years ago. The police are right to suspect it is Jigsaw’s handiwork, but how can that be with the maniac cold and buried in a nearby cemetery? Is it really him, or are there more grim disciples such as the since-dispatched Hoffman and the never-again-seen Dr. Gordon?

Dun-dun-dun!

The reveal, such as it were, will satisfy in one way but lead to a shrug on the other hand. But really, what other explanation can there ultimately be for how Jigsaw is still doing this from beyond the grave? The answer, as in much of the “Saw” universe, is hidden not so much in plain sight — which it is, especially if you recall how “Saw II” unfolded — as it is necessary to keep things moving along.

Never mind that, in eight films now, the traps have never once failed. Never mind that in “Saw”s I, II and III, the perpetrator was a 70-year-old frail man dying of cancer who somehow managed to engineer warehouses full of deadly devices that always hit their mark — and continued to do so flawlessly for five more films after he was killed off.

Logic isn’t the point here; it’s the vicarious experience of terror, which “Jigsaw” delivers.

There really is no good/bad metric when it comes to films like “Saw” so much as there is a competency to their execution. Horror films are arguably the most difficult films to do well other than comedy (think about it). The problem with the genre is their premises are so ludicrous that the horror elements almost always fail to scare, thereby requiring filmmakers to resort to the old funhouse methodology of jump scare/creep suddenly in the mirror/pounding on the soundtrack playbook to get even a cheap rise out of the audience. The “Saw” films were never about scares so much as unnerving and, it must be said, the gross-out factor of how much we would take.

In this “Jigsaw” can sit beside its septuplet siblings as a solid exercise. Director brothers Michael and Peter Spierig wisely stay away from the self-knowing pitfalls that too much modern horror sinks in, and they play the material with a straight, non-ironic face that follows in the footsteps of previous directors James Wan, Darren Lynn Bousman, David Hackl and Kevin Greutert. (No women in this group? Shocking right?)

While one can never call a new “Saw” film experimental, “Jigsaw” touches enough of the series’ tropes while simultaneously trying out a few new tricks. It’s a satisfying way to bring back a known brand that will indeed shock but not precisely awe.

And thankfully, Mr. Bell, who remains mostly off-screen even though his voice once again booms to introduce each successive “game,” is given one lengthy scene to actually act in the same frame with some of his victims. It’s a bit of a thankless task, but Mr. Bell does his best with the scene, and it’s pleasing and satisfying to see this talented actor—who once studied with Lee Strasberg — be given something to do that isn’t scenery-chewing. He deserves at least that much.

Will Jigsaw “return” again? I’d guess yes, and I’m not exactly doubtful more filmmakers will find yet another sleight of hand in order to shoehorn Mr. Bell into the storyline. These films cost almost nothing to produce and continue to reap rewards at the box office.

As Jigsaw/John has told us many times before, “let the games” continue.

Now playing at District-area theaters.

Rated R. Contains gore a-plenty, course language and the not-precisely-undead.