Its linear narrative and deeper exploration of Jigsaw are good logical progressions from the first film, however the amped-up gore and extraordinarily cynical characters puts Saw II at a great distance from the groundbreaking altar of the original. 

Detective Eric Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg) is summoned by the infamous Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) to ‘play a game’. With a SWAT team behind him, Matthews confronts Jigsaw at his base, where the detective realizes the killer has his son Daniel (Erik Knudsen) trapped in a house with six other prisoners. With only two hours before the nerve agent in the house kills them, Matthews has to match wits with Jigsaw if he is to have any chance of saving his son.

The Characters

On paper Matthews and Daniel are good leads for the story. Divorce has strained their relationship, Daniel has become a reckless thief and Matthews can barely reach him. Daniel’s capture by Jigsaw of course gives Matthews the opportunity to prove his love and loyalty to his son. Their story could’ve been more tense than Doctor Gordon’s in the first film as Matthews can actually see his child via a cluster of monitors navigating Jigsaw’s dungeon.

Unfortunately, the film doesn’t make enough of an effort to get us to care about either of them. We know that Matthews loves Daniel but we don’t see it. We don’t get any indication of Matthews’s concern for Daniel despite their troubled relationship. Judging from the few scenes they share, you would assume Matthews would be happy not to see his son again.

Consequently, you’re not too invested in Matthews but what about Daniel? He has to face Jigsaw’s traps, surely we’re invested in how he does? Yes and no. Out of the seven prisoners locked in the house he actually suffers the least, initially.

He’s more of a surrogate for the audience to witness the gruesome deaths of the other prisoners. He’s not a completely passive character. Similar to the first film, there’s a point where Daniel and the other prisoners learn how they’re all connected. This revelation ups the states significantly so of course I won’t spoil it but I will say that the twist puts Daniel on center stage in the group and forces him to defend himself.

Most of the prisoners are pretty grim people who’re no more than fodder for Jigsaw’s traps. Unsurprisingly, the most compelling of them all is Amanda (Shawnee Smith), the escapee of the reverse bear trap in the first film. She utilizes her experience and becomes the guide of the group, identifying red herrings and potential shortcuts planted by Jigsaw. Speaking of Jigsaw, he’s the best part of the film.

His philosophy, which we only got a glimpse of in the first film, gets a full spoken dissection. John Kramer reveals the events in his life that inspired him and his ‘work.’ If there’s one criticism I have of Jigsaw’s depiction it’s the joy he expresses in the messages to his victims. Whenever he chuckles at his own wordplay, he seems less like the genius mastermind who builds traps to advance a philosophical conviction and more like a modern Freddy Krueger-wannabe who’s only interested in his own sadistic pleasure. Those moments really downplay the character we were introduced to in the first film.

The Horror

Saw II deserves to be labelled as torture porn because with the exception of a jump scare or two, there are no attempts to inspire any other emotion than disgust. Now if the film’s goal is to disgust then it succeeds. There are sequences that are almost impossible not to cringe at, the best example being the excruciating needle pit scene.

I said this in my review of the first film but it’s been a while since I’ve watched the whole series and while I do know there is more torture porn to come, I also know there are sequences and plots more in line with the elegant, suspenseful horror of the original ahead. I await them with great enthusiasm as I believe the series as a whole doesn’t deserve its ‘torture porn’ notoriety and it’s always a pity whenever an entry evokes that stereotype.

Not the best follow-up by far but its exploration into Jigsaw, or John Kramer to be specific, makes it a noteworthy watch.

I give Saw II a mediocre 6 out of 10.