The Saw franchise is a series of psychological thrillers that keep their fans thinking, guessing, contemplating and making their own interpretations of what’s going to happen next as the grand scheme unfolds.
Part VI focuses primarily on Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor), who has emerged as the unchallenged successor to Jigsaw’s legacy. Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) is dead and has personally handed his life’s work over to his worthy accomplice Detective Mark Hoffman. We learn at the conclusion of part IV, that Hoffman is involved with Jigsaw’s life work and in part V, it’s revealed that Hoffman has been involved since the get-go. A flashback was shown from part I displaying one of Jigsaw’s famous games being set-up by the both of them. Originally, Jigsaw took two people under his wing from the very beginning, Hoffman and Amanda (Shawnee Smith), a young woman who escaped and beat one of Jigsaw’s twisted and sadistic games.
The only reason Jigsaw has taken these two people under his wing is because of the fact that he has a serious case of brain cancer and knows that eventually someone will need to carry on his life lessons once he is no longer among the living. Amanda is eventually tested. She fails and dies in part III, which leaves one accomplice remaining, Detective Hoffman. This never ending story now leaves us at part VI, Hoffman’s test.
Part VI starts off right where part V left off. Special Agent Peter Strahm (Scott Patterson) fails his game and his ultimately crushed by two walls caving in on his body. Detective Hoffman emerges from the glass box that Agent Strahm threw him in and examines what’s left of Strahm’s body. Hoffman finds one of Strahm’s hands in full form and utilizes it in his favor. For every sadistic game that Hoffman sets up, he uses Strahm’s hand and rubs his finger prints over the crime scene to make the FBI believe that Strahm is behind the grand scheme.
Eventually, the FBI discovers a tape from a previous trap in part V with Jigsaw’s voice on it. They realize that the voice on the tape isn’t actually Jigsaw’s but another person that distorted their own voice to sound like Jigsaw. As the FBI draws closer to Hoffman, he is forced to set a large game into motion. What Hoffman doesn’t realize, is that he is actually being tested by another unknown accomplice of Jigsaw, who’s been involved since the beginning. Who is the other accomplice? Will Hoffman prevail in his test? Or will the new unknown accomplice triumph and take Hoffman’s authority and make it their own? Live or die Detective Hoffman, make your choice!
I believe that part VI is an excellent installment to the franchise and gives dedicated fans a new perspective on what’s going on. Additional background information is revealed and questions are answered that were up in the air from previous parts in the Saw series. In retrospect, I believe Saw I is still superior over all other installments, with Part V being my second choice, but Part VI brings a lot to the table and delivers a new and twisted entree for Saw fanatics. Don’t miss out on chapter VI in this never ending tale.
Saw VII is in production and is expected to be released in 3-D sometime next year.
Saw VI has received 4 stars out of 5
