A Reel Review: SPIRAL - FROM THE BOOK OF SAW

In 2004, the horror genre was given a sorely needed vaccine when the tricky and twisty SAW spilled blood on our screens in imaginative ways; gone were the lumbering slashers and in came the killer with a brain and a vendetta. What sadly followed next were seven ridiculous, repetitive, and non-sensical sequels that sunk the franchise into the lower colon of the genre. Here in 2021, director Darren Lynn Bousman, who helmed three of those rancid sequels, returns to the series with yet another chapter. 

 

Detective Zeke (Chris Rock), is teamed up with rookie detective Shenk (Max Minghella), to solve a series of grisly murders that seem to be done by a copycat; replicating the deadly traps by the long-dead Jigsaw killer which put the victims in life or death situations. 

 

In directing his fourth SAW film, director Darren Lynn Bousman seems to have picked up on the many flaws of the previous films and decided to step far and away from them. Where the sequels tied themselves together with recurring characters redundantly siding with Jigsaw, this time around SPIRAL focuses on operating as a cop drama. Although the atmosphere is very much in the SAW world we’ve come to know, SPIRAL separates itself from the previous turds with decent character backstories that come into play in the present. Zeke has a history with his department; having once turned in a dirty cop which results in most of the squad room hating his guts (yellow betrays blue, as they say), and Zeke himself has issues with his father (Samuel L. Jackson), who was once the chief of police. And even as a cop drama, SPIRAL doesn’t hang it’s hat on the old cliché’s of the genre, as the banter between the seasoned and bitter Zeke and rookie Shenk is fresh and new. 

 

Once the killing does start, it’s SAW madness all the way. The traps are thankfully more grounded this time around; gone are the ridiculous giant gatling guns and laser beams, replaced by pure mechanics and engineering. There is a commitment to practical effects that mostly works, although an early sequence involving a cop’s tongue looks terrible. There are a few decent jump-scares, one or two good laughs, and some pop-culture references that earn a chuckle or two. 

 

For the first time in a long while, acting is very good for a SAW movie. Chris Rock makes the transition from comedy to drama very well, and he still manages to throw some of his familiar self in there. Max Minghella is excellent, and Samuel L. Jackson is, well, Sam Jackson. Marisol Nichols comes in as the new chief of police and is excellent. 

 

Every SAW film has a pre-requisite of having a twist. SPIRAL does indeed have one, but anyone who has ever seen at least one chapter of this series has been trained to watch out for dialogue that has more than one meaning. In short, the twist and the identity of the copycat killer is telegraphed early. What follows then is a finale that is loaded with decent irony and another twist that works well enough. The final trap and situation Zeke finds himself in has a lot of holes, but ends just right considering the characters. SPIRAL is new and same-old at the same time, and stands as the most functional sequel of the series. This is the medicine SAW has been needing. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: See it