Saw X Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		4.0
Overall		3.5

Saw X Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman November 20, 2023

It may be damning with faint praise to say that Saw X is probably the best Saw film since, well, Saw, but the ironic thing is that aspects that may provide the most interest to non genre and/or franchise aficionados may be the very things that most disappoint fans who have counted on new if not exactly improved Saw films to provide annual scare-a-thons around Halloween every year. It was well over a decade ago that I was just a little bit skeptical about the accuracy of the title of Saw: The Final Chapter, and while there was indeed a break after the release of that installment, it was followed some time later by Jigsaw and Spiral: From the Book of Saw, neither of which managed to completely reinvigorate the franchise, even if each had at least some aspects to provide interest. Now, in what might jokingly be referred to as Saw: No, Really, This Time It Is The Final Chapter (Though It Obviously Probably Isn't), Tobin Bell gets a real chance to strut some actorly stuff, which in the long run may be the best reason to see Saw X.

In his review of this film, my colleague Brian Orndorf kind of humorously talked about the Saw franchise's ability to keep fans engaged despite, as Brian called it, "retconning and logic-bending", and in that regard, while many Saw films have played with various timelines and what almost be called alternate universes, there's one thing that Saw X simply can't evade. The story is supposedly taking place between Saw and Saw II, but here's the thing: co-stars Tobin Bell and Shawnee Smith are considerably older now than they were when they made those films almost twenty years ago, and just that visual disjunction tends to subvert the very premise of the film. That said, the story itself follows the travails of John Kramer (Tobin Bell, of course) in the wake of his devastating diagnosis of brain cancer, which considering the "elder" status of Bell may cause some fans to joke, "that disease has really aged John".

A literal lifeline is offered to John when he hears about a supposed "miracle cure" being offered by a doctor in Mexico. He makes contact with the doctor's daughter, Cecilia Pederson (Synnøve Macody Lund), and is soon enough ensconced in a rural Mexican location that has a kind of rustic but still spa like medical treatment facility where Pederson assures John she can cure him. John's innate skepticism is overcome by Pederson's warmth and also by testimonials from cured patients Parker Sears (Steven Brand) and Gabriela (Renata Vaca). An ostensible surgery is performed, and Pederson tells John he is cancer free. When a grateful John returns to the site to offer a gift, he discovers everything is gone and he realizes he's been scammed. This is another moment where Brian's comment about "logic bending" might come into play, since as the story unfolds, it turns out Pederson has scammed any number of other people, and that in turn immediately begs the question as to whether she sets up these semi-luxe "traps" of her own and then dismantles them each time. Considering the fact that John does internet research on Pederson and in fact makes contact with her that way, you'd think he might have stumbled across a less than positive Yelp review or something as well. But I digress.

Suffice it to say that the scam of course gives John a new group of victims to "instruct" (so to speak), and with a little help from Amanda Young (Shawnee Smith), he's able to kidnap and ensnare not just Pederson, but her cohort whom John has ferreted out (one early accomplice has already succumbed to a "trap"). These include not just Pederson's medical assistants, but one of the supposedly cured patients who it turns out was part of the scam to begin with. A series of (of course) horrifying trap sequences then occur, as John's perhaps questionable sense of morality attempts to teach the individuals a rather important lesson in how to comport themselves, at least around John (and/or Amanda). There's one decently interesting twist involving an already introduced character in the second half of the film, and then kind of surprisingly the tables are turned on John when Pederson turns out to have a few "traps" up her sleeve (so to speak), which leads to one of the most disturbing sequences in the entire Saw franchise, when Pederson brings a child John has grown close to into the mix.

I mentioned above how what may make this the relative "best" Saw film in a good, long while may be the very thing that disappoints fans, and that's simply due to the fact that the Saw base (no judgmental pun intended) demographic comes to these films in order to witness absolutely gruesome injuries being inflicted on people. And while there are those moments throughout the film (including a rather early one that seems unrelated to anything other than to give fans a quick "fix" until the real mayhem kicks in), Saw X is really more of a character study, and as such actually has quite a bit of dialogue, including a number of extended "riffs" for Bell which according to the lengthy making of documentary included as a supplement, were more or less improvised by the actor. The result is that, as ironic as this may sound, John's character is "fleshed out" here, even as his victims are shorn of various limbs and other skin related elements.

Lest any franchise fanatics fear that this is the "final chapter" of Saw, it's clearly indicated in the making of documentary that a certain ambiguity as to the fate of one central character at the end of this enterprise was deliberately crafted to provide a pathway to a future installment.

Saw X Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Saw X is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.85:1. Captured with Sony CineAlta cameras and finished at 4K, this is a stupendously sharp (no trap pun intended) and well detailed presentation throughout, even when some intentionally severe grading and/or lighting choices are employed (the making of documentary gets into some of the color changes that are utilized). A glut of extreme close-ups also helps to elevate fine detail levels on everything from facial features to some of the really squirm inducing injuries that are part and parcel of the franchise. A number of scenes are minimally lit, and while there are some arguable passing deficits in shadow detail, general detail levels tend to be remarkably consistent throughout. The making of documentary actually gets into the "transition" this franchise made from 35mm to digital capture, and how that may have deprived the series of "texture" (as it's termed in the piece), but even with the kind of sleek, glossy visuals that digital captures tend to employ, there's a certain amount of grittiness here (arguably a bit less visibly in 1080 and SDR than in the 4K UHD version), if digitally achieved, that adds considerably to the subliminal (or in fact not so subliminal) angst factor.

Saw X Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Saw X features a nicely immersive Dolby Atmos track that provides consistent engagement of all the surround channels, and which exploits Atmos' vertical capabilities right from the get go in both the Lionsgate masthead (the fun old style "hellish orange" gear logo) and the Twisted Pictures masthead. Later in the actual film there's also one memorable moment when Pederson finds out there may be an interloper above her in her elegantly appointed mansion, and an even later sequence involving a character being hoisted into the air also offers some brief but notable overhead activity. Despite the claustrophobic confines that much of the story plays out in, there are clear uses of the side and rear channels in several of the trap sequences, and some of the "squishy" sound effects can be very unsettling. Charlie Clouser's score also resides comfortably in the surround channels. Kind of surprisingly, there really aren't a ton of startle effects emanating from the subwoofer. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Saw X Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary with Director / Editor Kevin Greutert, Cinematographer Nick Matthews and Production Designer Anthony Stabley


• Reawakening (HD; 1:35:47) is a really fun multi-part documentary that charts the production of the film, which actually began before Spiral: From the Book of Saw. This features a ton of good interviews with the cast and crew and should be a treasure trove (trap?) for diehard fans.


• Drawing Inspiration: Illustrated Scene Breakdowns with Director / Editor Kevin Greutert (HD; 33:55) offers analyses of several scenes in the film.


• Make-up Department Trap Tests (HD; 17:28)


• Deleted Scenes (HD; 37:10)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 2:30)

Lionsgate sent their 4K UHD release for purposes of this review, but it looks like this features a DVD, digital copy, and a slipcover.

Saw X Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Saw franchise fans will probably be jonesin' for even more gore than what's on display, while those new to the series (could there possibly be any people like that?) are probably going to wish for considerably less. Technical merits are first rate and the supplements are outstanding.