Wow. Probably the best sequel to a "classic" horror film I've ever seen. I actually managed to guess the "uber-twist" well beforehand, but it still hit me when it happened. Flick also features the coolest possible homage to Saw that you can imagine.

It's as much Cube as it is Saw I, and I loved the hell out of it.

A-

sweeeeet. i loved cube and the original saw, so my anticipation just jumped about 12 notches

I have to agree with Dark Shape. I was pleasently surprised with the ltitle touches going back to the original. Also, Whannal somehow made a remake that is just as good as the first. It has some awsome scenes mainly toward the end and the acting is much better, even though the acting didn't bother me as much in the first. All around great film. If you like the first, you will love this one also. A

Wow. This was quite the sequel. It was everything the original was only better. There is a ton of blood and gore, but not as much as some reviews will make you think. The twist ending caught me saying "What the hell" just as much as the first one did. But it is perfect with it tied together both films. The acting overall was much improved over the original. The traps are so clever and gigsaw is a true genious. I just love the mind games he plays with everyone.

I can't wait till Saw III comes out next Halloween.

A

Saw 2 suffers from everything you expect it to. Saw 1 worked because it was new. We hadn't seen it before. We guessed, we anticipated but we could never be sure about what would happen. The problem with sequels for such originals is that they're by default not allowed to deviate from the first. The lack of deviation also creates a been there dont that feeling. Saw 2 does suffer from it. While the traps and the game itself is more elaborate this time round, the little things we've learnt from Saw 1 allow us to see beyond what is happening at all times, and thus takes away from the suspense and intensity it should create. Furthermore, the addition of multiple people results in the expected deaths that you can see coming just seconds before. Saw 1 had 2 characters only. You did know what would happen. Their faiths weren't decided. In this case, they were ... while one may not guess the order of the deaths, it was pretty much understoof who would perish. So what does a film like Saw 2 need to do to create an identity of its own? Go a bit further than the first film did and throw us offguard like not even the original could do.

And that it ends up doing. I felt exactly the way bkb did with the first film. While i wasn't bored, i did find most of the movie to be standard. But it is the final moments of the film that get you looking around to see if others are following what you think is about to happen, glances to your buddies excitedly when you get a better understanding of the plot. While the ending of Saw 1 left me disappointed, the 2nd one has me praising. The ending gives a whole new meaning to the last hour and a half we just saw. Even though i guessed half of it, the other half just blew me away. And finally, as Cleric mentioned, the little reminders of the first film did wodners for the crowd.

The audience clapped at the end of the film. the audience clapped at some key moments towards the end when something rather familiar happens.

Saw 2 is not scary. it is not scary at all. People even laughed at half the stuff but it was the good laughter. it told us that even though the movie did not scare, it did entertain.

B+

Just one year ago, when this film was announced, I thought it was an awful idea. Everyone knows that I love the original Saw (it's one of my favorite horror movies ever, after all), and the best part about that film was how original and sick it was. So, yeah, while I wasn't too excited to hear a sequel, I was still anticipating to see what this film would be like. I automatically figured that there was no way in hell it could have been even half as good as the original. Wrong! Saw II is an intense, heart-pounding thrill ride. The perfect way to describe this film (as The Dark Shape mentioned earlier) is that it's a mixture of Cube and the original Saw. Whoever thought Saw was one sick film, get ready for a huge surprise -- Saw II is, by far, one of the sickest movies I've ever seen on screen. From the opening scene to every disgustingly awesome death scene the people in the film endure, you can't walk out of this film without at least being satisfied with the amount of gore jam-packed into the film. Surprisingly, Saw II had some half-decent performances from its large, yet unknown cast. One member of the cast does so well at being a complete asshole, you'll want to just... ahh, jump in the freakin' screen and just... yeah, he was good. The most important thing, though, was the story and the 'twist.' Saw was brilliant because of its shocking ending. Saw II's ending is quite shocking, though you'll likely guess one part (yeah, there's kind of two things to the twist) of the twist early into the film. Still, the surprise factor worked once again. Saw had many noticable flaws, and while this one did too (mainly the stupidity of some of the characters), it wasn't as annoying or evident. Overall, Saw II shocked the living hell out of me. Is it scary? Absolutely not. Is it extremely gory and entertaining? Absolutely. Is it better than the original? I can't rank one over the other, unfortunately. This film shocked me that much at how great it was. A

I was surprised it didn't flat out suck. It was slightly more tense than the original, and it didn't have the hokey ending. (I did guess the twist before it happened)

There are no scares in Saw II, but what it does provide is gut wrenching tension from beginning to end, as it takes place in real time. When an hour and a half of real life time goes by, that's how much time has passed in the movie. The pacing is excellent, as it was the quickest time passing film I've seen in a long time, and dare I say it, it deserves serious consideration at the Oscars for it's editing. The best editing I've seen in a movie this year.

I'd say it is going to go over pretty well with audiences seeking some thrills for their Halloween dollars.

B

I expected Saw 2 not living up to the original but it actually did with that nifty little twist in the end. Its very rare for sequels to be in par with the first movie in creativity and Saw is one of the very few to do so. The scenes are quite gruesome but the tension is slightly gone but still I give it a strong B+.The twist in the end can now explain why more sequels can be spawned even without the cancerman

Definitely not as good as the first one, for me. I think as cool as it was to put Jigsaw right out there and have him converse and explain his motivations, it also kind of ruined the mystique of the character. The elaborate "game" that was set up was pretty inventive though and going in and out of the monitors as a split-narrative device was neat. Everything was going along at a decent pace and I was moderately entertained (though annoyed at the overexposure of Jigsaw) and then the twist came. I thought the twist in the first film was genius, but this one just didn't cut it and doesn't bode well for the future of this franchise. Taking on a protege is just a bad idea, especially that actress. Are you really excited to see a future Saw with her as the mastermind? Hell no. The one good thing about the ending was the nice tie-in with the bathroom set-up from the first movie.

I had no problems with the acting this time out. As many people have pointed out, the blubbering Elwes near the end of Saw was a definite blemish on that film. Tobin Bell was deliciously creepy and Wahlberg was pretty convincing as a worried father. The movie was never scary, whereas the first film had a few moments of earned suspense and terror (the photographer in his apartment using the flash to light things up). But what really pissed me off was the obscene editing. Now, people really need to lay off Tony Scott and Domino after witnessing Saw 2. That first scene counts down to that guy getting smoked in his death helmet, yet I was completely thrown out of the intensity of the situation because of the burst editing. And it continues throughout the movie, not as bad mind you, but it is still annoying. Do we really need a sped up shot of a truck rounding a corner? I mean, what the fuck is that? These young directors need to watch some fucking Hitchcock and Shyamalan and learn how to deliver suspense without the use of jack-hammer editing. If it's too hard to focus on, people lose interest in what's going on. Fucking smarten up.

C+

AHHHHH SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT THAT JUST SPOILED ME



Dammit! I would edit before more read benny, just for look-out advice.

I was under the impression that these review threads were unrestrictive and that any spoilers were fair game. They are for people to talk about the movie after they have seen it.

I'm sorry I spoiled it for you. I'll tag it.

Mods: for future reference, do I need to tag spoilers?

Oh its not that bad, but for a movie like Saw II that ultra-relys on the big twist at the end and is one of the most spoiler-prone movies of the year, it would probably be wise to tag it.

I can't remember what the spoiler tags are. Can you help me out.

This forum is for spoilers. Anything goes. Right under "Everyone's a Critic" at the forum index, it says:

* Spoilers * This is the place to give us YOUR reviews on the movies you have seen. Discussion of movies is welcomed, but please do not comment if you have not previously seen the movie! Spoilers are ALLOWED inside. * Spoilers *

Well normally for spoilers, also used in the tv forum, we use white-text. Example:

Ding ding ding

To read, its just drag-over highlighting.

Shack, spoilers are allowed in this forum. Don't read anything in here if you don't want to know, because I'm not holding back any spoilers for a forum that allows them because you can't show self control and stay out of this forum.

Do we really need to abide by the rules that much? Its just common courtesy to warn of spoiling, especially for a twist like this. Theres no need to be ruthless about it.

Stay out of the forum or don't bitch. It's never been an issue for anybody, so you're gonna have to deal with it or get spoiled. I knew Amanda was shady and guessed she was not to be trusted. When she left the lead cop shackled in the very same restroom that the first one took place in at the end, it was a great setup for another sequel.

Yeah, that's what I figured. That's why I like this forum. A few other sites I visit demand spoiler tagging in review threads.

Yes, that's what I like about this forum, too. Anybody that comes into it shouldn't expect everybody to bend over to please them. Stay the hell out if you don't like spoilers!

I have very little patience for somebody on the internet reading any and all threads about a film, and whining when they read something they didn't want to know. It would be one thing if a spoiler was mentioned in the weekend estimates thread, but if somebody doesn't want to know, what the hell are they reading for, right?

spoilers are allowed though we can be curteous and try to hide it .. you know .. out of that respect them

I'm about ready to run through each death in detail and in order to really spoil things.

Spoilers are allowed, but yeah, I'll never spoil anything without the spoiler warning. It's your choice, and for someone who didn't see it, it's their risk to run into a twist, especially for a film like this.

Back on topic. Saw II rocks. 'Nuff said.