Saw 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		4.0

Saw 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman May 15, 2021

With tongue possibly just slightly in cheek, it might be stated that if anyone needs a little reassurance that life is seemingly finally returning to something approaching "normal", Lionsgate is finally picking up with its often head scratching 4K UHD releases, which I've jokingly compared to choices made by someone throwing darts (while blindfolded) at a spreadsheet of available Lionsgate titles. Some previous Lionsgate 4K UHD releases seemed designed to get rid of warehouse "remainders" of old 1080 product, which has at least at times been packaged by the studio with their "new, improved" 4K UHD versions of any given title, but perhaps surprisingly, that isn't the case here, with the 1080 disc sporting not just a shiny new transfer, but Atmos audio and some nice supplements (the first Blu-ray release of Saw was a bare bones affair). The 4K UHD version may also surprise some fans of the film, since Saw was not shot on a huge budget (as some the supplements get into), and has therefore never had a great deal of technical polish in terms of the visuals, but both the increased resolution and added highlights courtesy of HDR (and/or Dolby Vision) have definitely upped the video ante considerably.

As mentioned above, Saw received an early (a very early) Blu-ray release way back in 2006, though my colleague Martin Liebman didn't review it until 2008, in the wake of the release of Saw IV (similarly, there's little doubt in my mind that this release is being used to help with the marketing of Spiral: From the Book of Saw). If there's anyone still left who doesn't have at least an inkling of what the film is about, Marty's Saw Blu-ray review provides a good plot summary. Marty's review is also a good resource for screenshot comparisons of at least the 1080 versions. As mentioned above, that first Blu-ray release had no supplements, and so this release is the clear winner in that regard. In just the latest example of "different reviewers, different opinions", you'll note I give the overall film just a slightly higher score than Marty did. I admittedly roll my eyes at some of the "coincidences" the story offers, especially as things wend their way toward their conclusion, but the central showdown between the two focal characters has always struck me as the film's best element, even beyond the "games" leading to gruesome deaths, and in that regard, Saw is consistently (forgive me my sins) sharp.

Saw 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Note: Screenshots are sourced from the 1080 Blu-ray.

Saw is presented in 4K UHD courtesy of Lionsgate Films with a 2160p transfer in 1.85:1 (it's worth noting that the old Lionsgate 1080 Blu- ray was in 1.78:1). Since this release also includes a 1080 version which is different from the original Blu-ray release from Lionsgate, I'll attempt to address both transfers. As can be made out by comparing selected screenshots, this 1080 version is at times noticeably if still kind of subtly brighter and less skewed toward blue than the old Lionsgate release (compare the first screenshot in this review with the first screenshot in Marty's review to see just one example of what I'm talking about), though that said, there are still obviously a prevalence of blue tones throughout both the 1080 and 2160 presentations, especially in the "prisoner" scenes, but also with regard to some of the hospital material told via flashback. And in fact the 2160 version did look a bit more blue to my eyes than the 1080 version, though still not quite as cool as the original 1080 release. Conversely, however, select scenes look a bit darker and better suffused than the original 1080 version (see the screenshot of Danny Glover looking toward the left in both reviews). That Glover screenshot brings up another interesting difference, in that the almost sickly green tones that are also frequently utilized in the film attain a slightly garish, yellowed quality now, something that's especially evident in the 2160 version. The palette continues to show variances from the first Blu-ray release, and may really show its full colors in more ways than one in some of the more naturally lit and graded scenes, as in some of the home scenes with the Elwes character and his family. Kind of funnily, despite a number of pretty aggressive grading choices, blood reds still maintain visceral levels of vividness throughout the presentation. Marty was less than enthusiastic about the old Lionsgate disc's overall video quality, but mentioned a lack of shadow detail and inadequate blacks hounding that release, and in my estimation, both of those aspects are markedly improved in both the 1080 and 2160 versions included in this release. The uptick in shadow detail in the 4K UHD version in particular is fairly remarkable at times, with, for example, at least marginally more discernable information in the frame in the very opening scene in the bathtub. Despite an obviously very gritty looking grainfield (which has just hints of a blue pixellated quality at times), detail levels are surprisingly fulsome, once again noticeably improved in the 4K UHD version. Fine detail on textures, even including supposedly "smooth" items like the ankle clasps the two focal characters are burdened with, is typically excellent.

Saw 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Both the 1080 and 2160 discs in this release offer a fantastic sounding Dolby Atmos track. From virtually the get go, with the gurgling water noises and slight silvery effect that wafts through the soundstage, this is a dynamic and spookily immersive track. There are a number of great moments where the Atmos channels definitely add to the almost delirious feeling of the story, with two real standouts being the "Paul" sequence (the guy in the razor wire) and the "Amanda" sequence (the girl in the jaw contraption). The Amanda sequence in particular offers a swirling array of effects that seems to float (albeit aggressively) up and around the listener. There's also some good directionality in dialogue scenes, as in Elwes' first line nicely emanating from the rear channels. Even simple effects like the squeak of the tricycle attain a nice level of creepiness. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout this problem free track. Optional English, English SDH and Spanish subtitles are available.

Saw 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

4K UHD Disc Supplements

• Audio Commentary by Director James Wan, Writer / Actor Leigh Whannell, and Cary Elwes


• Audio Commentary by Producers Mark Burg, Gregg Offman and Oren Koules


• Game Changer: The Legacy of Saw (HD; 57:59) is a really entertaining and enjoyable 2021 retrospective from Red Shirt Productions, with a lot of great interviews with the principal cast and crew. This should be a real treat for most Saw fans.

1080 Blu-ray Supplements

• Audio Commentary by Director James Wan, Writer / Actor Leigh Whannell, and Cary Elwes


• Audio Commentary by Producers Mark Burg, Gregg Offman and Oren Koules


• Game Changer: The Legacy of Saw (HD; 57:59)


• Saw: The Original Short Film (SD; 9:28) is the original that helped to generate interest in the feature film. This is especially interesting in terms of the financing side of the business, since the recently reviewed Clapboard Jungle actually has some notable talking heads waxing philosophical about getting interested investors to pay attention with gambits like this or so-called "look books".


• Hacking Away at Saw (SD; 36:13) is an aggregation of featurettes dedicated to pre-production, production and post-production, here cheekily likened to bones, tendons and skin.


• Alternate Storyboard Sequence (SD; 2:25)


• Theatrical Trailer (SD; 2:05)

Additionally, a digital copy is included.

Saw 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I am admittedly not a huge fan of horror films in general, and tend to be even less so of efforts like Saw, but I've always appreciated the central premise of this first film, even if some of the sidebar material is almost unintentionally funny (to me, anyway) at times. Saw has never been a "pretty" film by any means (and, really, how could it be, considering its often gruesome subject matter?), but both the 1080 and 2160 versions included in this release really show the film off to its best advantage. The Atmos track is also very enjoyable, and Lionsgate has made this even more alluring by including some nice supplemental material. Recommended.