This is, by far, one of the most interesting and consistent trilogies ever. Although each sequel is being made for the huge profit Lionsgate seems to generate off of their extremely low-budget films, it feels like James Wan intended for his Saw film to spawn two more films that tied all the loose ends together and gave the series an outstanding conclusion. Saw introduced us to the madman. Saw II took us deeper into his reasoning for his work. Saw III will take us even further into Jigsaw’s puzzle and leave you astonished at how his legacy will end. All three films make this series an absolute masterpiece. It’s hard to pick one over the other, as each film brings a different style to the table. And that’s probably what I love best about this series. Scream, The Grudge, Texas Chainsaw Massacre… essentially, all these horror films and their sequels ended up being the same thing over and over again. Saw never did that. The only thing the three films have in common are the ridiculous amounts of blood and gore, and as each chapter is made, the amount of gore rises exponentially. Saw III is not an easy film to watch, but it must be seen by all horror fans, ASAP.

Saw III picks up literally 30 seconds after Saw II finished (you know who is still in the room). The investigation for Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) continues, as well as the body of Detective Eric Matthews. More people are killed during this investigation, though in an unusual, non-Jigsaw kind-of-way. Detective Kerry (Eric’s ex-partner from Saw II) catches on immediately. Meanwhile, Jigsaw is laying in his deathbed at an undisclosed location. He wants to play a final game. While city detectives scramble to locate him, Dr. Lynn Denlon (Bahar Soomekh) is unaware that she is about to become the latest pawn on his vicious chessboard. One night, after finishing a shift at her hospital, Lynn is kidnapped by the deranged Amanda, Jigsaw’s new apprentice, and taken to an abandoned warehouse where she meets Jigsaw. Lynn is told that she must keep the madman alive for as long as it takes Jeff (Angus Macfayden), another of his victims, to complete a game of his own.

Saw III’s approach to the “game” is somewhat similar to Saw’s game, in that it doesn’t involve a house of pain involving a large group of victims, but two victims, both somehow related, fighting to survive. However, unlike Saw, the victims aren’t sitting around waiting for their demise; instead, they must face difficulties in their quest for freedom. Jeff’s test is interesting, for the whole test revolves around his past. Jeff is the father of a son who was killed by a drunk driver. Ever since, he’s been trying to seek revenge. Jigsaw promises Jeff that he’ll find his child’s murderer at the end of the maze, but he’ll only get there if he learns to forgive and forget other people involved with his child’s death. On the flip side, Dr. Lynn Denlon is forced to keep Jigsaw alive. She’s strapped with a device around her neck – a bomb that’ll explode once Jigsaw’s heart-rate flat lines. So, obviously, she has a major reason for trying to keep Jigsaw alive.

Saw III is far more well-written than its predecessors. The film explores the mind of Jigsaw even further than Saw II did, including flashbacks of his once “happy” existence. In addition, we get an in-depth look at the relationship between Jigsaw and his apprentice, Amanda. Their relationship is quite fascinating, but different from what you’d expect. And what’s most impressive is that everyone in the film gives a fairly solid performance, except Tobin Bell, who gives a fantastic one. Jigsaw will go down as one of the best (and scariest) villains in history.

But, of course, the biggest attraction to this series is the amount of blood and torture it features. If you thought Saw and Saw II pushed the limits, you haven’t seen anything yet. Saw III goes above and beyond. It’s a challenging film to watch, and I’m not one who ever gets squeamish during these types of films. Scenes involving twisting of body parts, the freezing of human beings, acid, and more make this film the sickest movie I’ve ever seen, hands down. Jigsaw’s “favorite” device is a difficult watch. And, one particular scene involving a surgery is even worse. I don’t want to spoil the details, but yeah, it’s intense. To the max.

Saw III is easily the best horror film of the year, one of the best I’ve ever seen, and a fantastic conclusion to the best horror series ever. Plain and simple. It isn’t afraid to push the envelope and challenge the limits, in terms of the amount of blood and gore. It actually makes a few films I called “extremely bloody” look like Finding Nemo. However, I don’t just love Saw III because of its intense sequences, but the film is quite satisfying in terms of its characters and their interactions, the storyline itself, and the jaw-dropping conclusion. As I said earlier, I can’t pick one film in this series and rank it over another. And I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Saw IV next October (although really, I can’t figure out how they’ll go about doing that), but if it’s made, I don’t think it can touch this trilogy. It’s currently perfect.