Saw has returned with one note from Willem Dafoe’s Norman Osborn… “Back to formula.”

Score: 3/5

Somehow, I have watched all but one of the Saw movies, that being Spiral, but I have never been a huge fan. Torture porn isn’t my thing, and the heavy guitar riffs as someone cuts through their own flesh to “save” themselves has never really worked for me. This franchise is a lot like the Fast & Furious, in that the entries that have really leaned into its strengths have been my favorites. Saw VI for having a premise that actually makes sense, and Saw: The Final Chapter (not so final, huh?) for embracing the goofy soap opera that the series has always danced around. Saw X is a little bit of both, which should be a good thing, but feels a little hollow at this point.

The franchise as a whole is about a man named John Kramer (Tobin Bell), who, after receiving a terminal cancer diagnosis, decides that he wants to “help” people understand the value of their lives by forcing people to participate in self-mutilation games in order to avoid death. As the franchise went on, Kramer died, but the games continued with direct and indirect connections to the man, also known as Jigsaw. To get back to basics, Saw X, goes back in time (another staple of the Fast & Furious movies), to when Kramer is very much alive. It tells a story between one and two, that attempts to paint Kramer as a sympathetic protagonist. Conned into believing he is getting experimental cancer treatment in Mexico, he kidnaps his so-called saviors and starts a new set of games across the border.

What ensues is the same general thing that happens in every Saw. Audiences are treated to super gorey traps as they watch these participants usually fail miserably. This time, like Saw VI before it, the players of the games are monsters in their own right, so it’s easier to stomach what is happening to them. Also, just like every Saw, they have several twists towards the end to surprise everyone with what was really going on. Some of the movies have clever twists, the original being the gold standard. This one? Meh. It seemed a little too convoluted even for my forgiving movie-logic perspective to accept. The traps are also getting a tad too realistic for me to watch without getting a sick feeling in my stomach. If they are going to be torture porn, I’d much prefer them to feel goofy.

While I wasn’t a huge fan of the story twists, and don’t really buy into the Kramer’s not-the-bad-guy take, spending more time with him in this movie was a change of pace for the better. It gives a better argument for his methods than most of the other films in the franchise and made me feel at least a little concerned about if he would pull off this vengeance game. Is it enough to make this movie worth watching? I don’t think so, but again, I’m not a huge fan of the franchise lore.

Saw X feels closer to the Saw movies of old right before it got to campy Final Chapter territory. I’m sure for some fans, that is going to be great news. For me? It was a mixed bag that never quite reached the point of being good. Saw X is okay, but there are better horror movies worth watching this year.