Jay Erickson-

Many people view the 2004 movie Saw as nothing more than so-called “torture porn”. If that was all there was to the movie, how could it have spawned such a long-running series, with Saw X releasing in theaters on September 29th of this year? To take a look beyond the gore and the murder reveals a carefully thought-through story with powerful social commentary.

Jigsaw, the film series’ villain, places people into traps and leaves tapes for them, explaining what they must do in order to escape. However, these people are not just your average Joes. Each of Jigsaw’s victims holds a secret; whether it be related to murder, drug dealing, or other deeds Jigsaw deems wrong.

It is revealed that Jigsaw’s true identity is John Kramer (played by Actor Tobin Bell), a terminally ill brain cancer patient. Kramer was already at a low point in his life,  and after losing his child and wife, he was diagnosed. Kramer attempted to end his own life by driving off a cliff, believing he had no reason to live due to his diagnosis. Miraculously surviving, he was led to believe he had been saved for a reason, that reason being to teach people who throw away their lives that pain is a part of living.

On one hand, the movies demonstrate that trauma can lead people to do things that they likely never would have before. On the other hand, they show how disconnected humans have become and what people will do to survive and get their own way, even if it means harming others.

In Saw II the game’s “contestants”, for lack of a better word, were meant to work together to escape the traps whilst confronting the terrible deeds they had done. Rather than doing that, they split up, fought with and even killed each other. If the group had put others ahead of themselves or learned from their life’s mistakes, they all could have made it out of the game, Saw V following  a similar plot.

In Saw III the main character, Jeff (played by Actor Angus Macfadyen), is faced with the people involved in his son’s death, the people he had sworn vengeance upon. Jigsaw, through his game, attempts to teach Jeff that vengeance consumes life and causes people to forget about the things most important in life. He encourages Jeff to save the people he has hated for so long. Throughout this “game”, Jeff attempts to save all of the perpetrators from their untimely demise. Unfortunately, in every case, he falls short. Kramer, at the end of the film, applauds him for his attempts. Jeff however is so angry at Kramer for putting him through the game in the first place that he kills Kramer, resulting in his failing the final test.

While Jigsaw’s methods are clearly psychotic and wrong, the messages he is trying to send with his “games” are powerful and impactful. He could in this way be compared to Marvel villains like Thanos and Killmonger. Even in reality, there are many circumstances in which a person means well but their actions are unintentionally or unknowingly inappropriate.

While the Saw movies are not perfect and, in some opinions, unnecessarily violent, they have the potential to teach important social lessons. Perhaps it is time to drop the “torture porn” label often attached or at least add that of “social commentary”.