Saw VI: A Failed Exercise in Social Commentary
Though I told myself I would not allow the Saw franchise to break my heart again, I caught Saw VI at my local cineplex last week. Buoyed by the positive reviews of other horror bloggers, I went in with high hopes that were promptly dashed to bits. Spoilers and analysis to follow. The film starts off with a trap that riffs off of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice . Just as Shylock demands his pound of flesh in repayment for a bad loan, two loan officers are pitted against each other in a twisted a game where they have to offer up their own flesh to survive. According to Jigsaw, these unlucky lenders have preyed on people who could not repay the balance of their loan. The one who cuts off the most flesh will escape having screws torqued deep into their brain. Though this seems like a straightforward enough trap, it is comically complicated by the fact that one lender is severely overweight compared to his petite colleague. This scene is the high point of the film. Aesthetically, Saw ...