Saw (2004) - A Killer With A Code

The games we play should always follow rules. Simply playing to win isn't good enough if we can't discern between cheating and strategising. Mind games are especially deadly when we don't follow the set path but where's the fun in that. Maybe every players can derive pleasure by participating within a controlled environment; and just maybe, it's in that challenge that we can find the road to true enlightenment.

The premise is simple - Two men wake up in a run-down room with no recollection of how they arrived there. In a game presented before them, they must work together to piece the puzzle that joins them in the hell they find themselves in.

James Wan and Leaigh Whannel wrote an enticing screenplay with elements made up of real life fears the pair had as children. Over 18 gruelling days of make up FX and set design, Wan directed the film in its entirety. It was the previous years short based on a short scene from the bigger story that would convince studio execs to take a chance on the project and a small Aussie dream became a big Hollywood success.



The rules of this game are made very clear. All the pieces are there and every move is carefully thought out. If we look at the size of the board it's easy to see why it works flawlessly in a one-room setting (or at least for the most part). You'll be surprised what a few simple twists and turns can do to reinvigorate your love for the horror genre and what a grander illusion can accomplish in the staging of a suspenseful mystery.