Movie Review Recap: Saw Franchise

Over the past week or so, I’ve revisited and reviewed all of the Saw movies. I even saw Spiral, the ninth film in the Saw franchise, on opening night and reviewed it as well. For your convenience, below are links to all of these reviews, as well as a link to a post I wrote about meeting Tobin Bell and Costas Mandylor at Monster-Mania a few years back. I even got to interview Costas Mandylor for that piece! I hope you enjoy all of the time and work that went into these articles, and remember: the game is never truly over.

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Revisiting Saw VI

Saw VI, released in 2009, is the lowest grossing movie in the Saw franchise, only bringing in approximately $68 million. Kevin Greutert, longtime editor for the Saw films, makes his directorial debut in Saw VI. He’d go on to also direct Saw 3D. So, is Saw VI worth watching, let alone revisiting? Read on to find out.

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Revisiting Saw V

Released in 2008, Saw V featured the directorial debut of David Hackl, who had served as a production designer on Saw II-IV and a second-unit director on Saw III and IV. It is the first of the Saw sequels not to open at number one at the box office, yet it grossed nearly $114 million. Personally, I think Saw V is more enjoyable than Saw IV. Why? Read on for my thoughts.

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Revisiting Saw IV

Saw III is the greatest sequel in the Saw franchise and one of the most inspired and well executed horror films I’ve ever seen. Just one year later, in 2007, Saw IV was unleashed upon the world, and it had big shoes to fill. Once again, Darren Lynn Bousman was the director. However, there was a new writing team on board, and they were faced with the massive challenge of continuing and expanding on the intricately woven stories of the original Saw trilogy, which felt like a collective unit. Did the team succeed in making a worthy successor in Saw IV? Read on for my spoiler-filled thoughts.

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Monster-Mania 30: A Nightmare Worth Living

Meeting Tobin Bell at Monster-Mania 30.

Meeting Tobin Bell at Monster-Mania 30.

Last Saturday I attended Monster-Mania. This biannual event features notable actors and actresses from the horror, action, comedy, and science fiction genres, as well as professional wrestlers. For the thousands that attend, this is an opportunity to meet their idols, get autographs, participate in photo-ops, watch Q&A panels, browse through aisles of cool merchandise, and enjoy hours upon hours of movies.

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