Blu-ray Release Date: January 23, 2018
Directors: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig
MPAA Rating: R
Runtime: 92 Minutes
Purchase: Amazon
It’s been seven long years since Jigsaw and his merry band of self-righteous psychopaths graced the screen, and, evidently, enough time passed to justify a reboot of the Saw franchise. This time it’s dubbed simply Jigsaw, in lieu of a numbered sequel, and the reins have been turned over to directors Michael and Peter Spierig, whose unique brand of storytelling can be seen in such films as Daybreakers and Predestination. While they did bring a much-needed refresh to the visuals of the Saw series, sadly they didn’t bring Ethan Hawke along with them this time to star.
With the film coming out this week on Blu-ray, 4K, and digital, you can welcome Jigsaw and his nasty little death traps back into your collection, but is it worth a buy? That all depends on how big of a franchise fan you are, because Jigsaw doesn’t do a whole lot to elevate the series. You can read Blake’s full review for the film itself to get an idea of what to expect: Jigsaw has a fresh coat of paint but does little else to reinvigorate the franchise.
One of the strongest aspects of the film, and something that was acutely showcased in the Blu-ray release, is the top-notch practical effects. The Saw series always tried to keep its effects practical as much as possible, and Jigsaw is no exception. In particular, the prosthetics work was impressively done to say the least, resulting in some incredibly detailed and grotesque corpse shots.
Included in this Blu-ray, DVD, digital combo pack is a seven-part, making-of featurette, which goes through every aspect of the filmmaking process, from casting and special effects to sound and lighting. Like many of these making-of supplements, it mostly consists of several interesting behind-the-scenes facts sandwiched between a barrage of praise from everyone in the cast and crew, making the film out to be the best experience of their lives.
In addition, there’s a featurette on the traps of Jigsaw, a short video that could have probably been included in the making-of section but was, for some reason, listed on its own. This just goes over the small props built for the film, and, while they were cool looking, small props were not very prominent in this entry so there really wasn’t much to show.
Jigsaw is a relatively entertaining, but ultimately forgettable, reboot in the Saw series. Although the sound and visual clarity on the Blu-ray is great, with the slightly lackluster supplements and mediocre film, I’d only recommend picking this one if you’re a completionist looking to finish your Saw collection.
