At best, Saw IV is interesting as it reveals more of John Kramer’s past as well as a new apprentice of his. At worst it’s an unnecessary addition to the series that tells a shallow story with a dull lead, pointless gore and a climax that does an injustice to established characters.

Commander Rigg (Lyriq Bent), the SWAT leader who couldn’t even be called a supporting character in the first two films, is lured by Jigsaw into another string of gruesome games with the promise of finding his superiors Detectives Matthews (Donnie Wahlberg) and Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) alive. However, time is of the essence, as Rigg has only 90 minutes to finish the games before the trap holding Matthews and Hoffman goes off.

The Characters

Since he is the sole survivor of the police team we were introduced to in Saw I and II, it’s understandable that Rigg is positioned as the lead. It’s novel that the film acknowledges this by burdening Rigg with a saviour complex. After losing all his colleagues, his determination to catch Jigsaw has become so great that his superiors and even his family have challenged him on his behaviour.

On paper, Rigg is the perfect candidate to lead the follow-up to Saw III. Unfortunately, Saw IV does not provide the time Rigg needs to fulfill his potential as a protagonist. Intercut with his journey is an FBI investigation conducted by agents Peter Strahm (Scott Patterson) and Lindsey Perez (Athena Karkanis).

What they learn during the course of their investigation is what makes Saw IV ‘interesting.’ It’s through their interviews with John Kramer’s ex-wife Jill (Betsy Russell) that we find out who John was before his cancer diagnosis, the harmonious life he shared with Jill and the individuals he encountered who would inspire his philosophy.

The flashbacks that accompany Jill’s interview give John Kramer even more dimension as a character. These scenes are easily the highlights of the film.

Beyond Jill’s interview, Peter and Lindsey’s investigation offers nothing but the grizzly aftermaths of the traps Rigg encounters as they track his trail. There is nothing personal at stake for these two. Their interest in Rigg and Jigsaw is purely professional, which while interesting, isn’t worth the screen time. This results in two good plots (Rigg’s and past Kramer’s) being diluted by one mediocre plot (Peter and Lindsey’s).

Detective Matthews is totally wasted here. He is nothing more than a male Damsel in Distress. In Saw II he showed potential as a character; he was a rabid cop and while he didn’t often show it, he had a deep undying love for his son, a love he would do anything to prove. To bring him back as only a hostage, without his son Daniel, is a ridiculous choice. Thanks to Saw IV, Eric Matthews remains the stereotypical dirty cop we met in Saw II.

The Horror

I know this is only part four of a ten-part series but I’m already beginning to see a pattern. When I had finished watching Saw IV, I was wondering if I was seeing the opposite of the curse that the Star Trek films allegedly suffered. With Trek it’s the odd-numbered films that are supposed to be the worst yet so far with Saw, it seems it’s the even-numbered films that are the lowest in quality.

The big flaw that Saw IV shares with Saw II is its overreliance on gore. With the exception of maybe two jump scares, the film makes no effort to evoke any feeling of discomfort or genuine fear. Most of the gore occurs in the traps Rigg is led to, where Jigsaw tests his saviour complex by presenting a prisoner, specifically someone despicable and undeserving of life, who he can choose to free. In most instances Rigg chooses to free the prisoner but even when he’s successful, the prisoner endures a long agonising escape. It’s difficult not to suspect that the extensive gore Rigg has to witness is merely compensation for his lack of character.

There are two plots here that could’ve made a good film but due to an inadequate third plot along with an overdependence on gore, Saw IV is undoubtedly worse than Saw II and quite possibly the worst of the series.

That will that be put to the test going forward as well as the even-numbered curse I described. We’ll have to see. Saw V has a lot riding on it.

I give Saw IV a dull 5 out of 10.