Critics are sharing their opinions on Saw X, with reviews for the new horror prequel now pouring in online. Directed by Kevin Greuter, the latest installment in the long-running horror franchise sees Tobin Bell’s John Kramer, aka Jigsaw, return to exact his deliciously gory form of vengeance upon a group of medical scammers in Mexico. The film, which takes place between the first and second entries in the Saw movie timeline, was met with mostly enthusiastic reactions on social media yesterday.
Ahead of the Saw X release date, critics are now sharing their full thoughts on the new prequel, and the sentiment is generally positive. Franck Scheck of THR praises the film and its new focus on Bell’s character, writing “these films are undeniably fiendishly clever in the way they make Kramer somehow sympathetic even while he’s doing monstrous things to people.” Owen Gleiberman of Variety expresses that the film is “closer to being a real movie” and that “John Kramer…is so front and center that Tobin Bell has never given such a full-scale performance as the human behind Jigsaw.”
What The Saw X Reviews Are Saying About The Movie
Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting is also enthusiastic about the movie, praising the traps as “brutal and unrestrained; prepare for a lot of wincing at the screen. But they carry with them an emotional impact on both the characters and the story.” IndieWire‘s review from Alison Foreman is also generally positive, praising the increased focused on Kramer and the “back-to-basics approach with its utterly nauseating contraptions, drawing out the traps’ various premises before launching the thieves into mercilessly short testing times.”
Keeping the praise coming, Ian Sandwell of Digital Spy calls it “the most effective Saw sequel yet,” but he also echoes a common criticism that appears in several reviews for the film, writing, “They do take too long to get to the moment when Kramer realises the miracle cure for his cancer in Mexico is just a scam. We know it has to fail unless the filmmakers had chosen a drastic retcon, so as much as it’s interesting to see a Saw movie take its time, it’s not entirely successful.“
Tessa Smith of Mama’s Geeky is also enthusiastic about the new movie, praising the intersection of brutal gore and emotional storytelling. She writes: “While the traps certainly play a part in why the movie is as good as it is, the real reason Saw X shines is because of the personal and emotional story that is woven into it.” It remains to be seen how audiences will respond to Saw X upon its theatrical release this weekend, but the reviews certainly suggest that those keeping up with the franchise are in for a bloody good time.
