Your Favorite Saw?

I saw the first one, and unlike Phone Booth it resorted to flash backs and external scenes, all of which defeated the sheer coolness of the setup. Rubbish film.

offensive images deleted

Classy.

I didn’t see the images, but with a little luck, they got him banned.

With a little luck, he won’t be back.

Whoops! And there goes Tessen!

So, what did he post?
Clearly NSFW, but was it bloody movie stilsl or did he just implode because he was mocked and posted random disgusting shit?

Gory animated gifs.

I’ve seen worse, but it was a bit above & beyond.

So I have an appointment with the first couple in this series tomorrow night with a young woman who somehow managed to talk me into it. It’ll be our second date and I’m hosting the event, but I really hate movies like these.

My problem is empathy, I think – I have way too much of it and when I see scenes or movies featuring the awful suffering of characters who can’t and won’t triumph – or when the feeling of utter doom far outweighs any possible feeling of triumph – I feel like I have no safe place to go to. Whether the characters are despicable our douchey or not doesn’t seem to matter. I told the young woman that in exchange for putting up with the movies, she will have to supply me with booze, but I don’t think that’ll be enough (in part because she’s a lightweight and I don’t want to outdrink her). About a year ago I powered through the Hostel and Human Centipede movies with a different woman who similarly talked me into it, and my psyche is still trying to repair itself both from the subject matter’s effects on me and from the (mostly) bad filmmaking.

Any of you seen these movies and are like me in the above regard? What helped you get through the experience? Now that this is only 24 hours away, my stomach is in knots.

Maybe it’s because I watch so many horror movies, but I can’t imagine being the least bit bothered by a Saw movie. The first one had a kind of cool mystery and a touch of David Fincher’s tone from Seven, but the rest of them are just so completely inconsequential to me. There’s not a character worth caring about or a plot worth following. They’re just excuses for filmmakers to shoot their vision of wince-inducing dilemmas.

As for powering through the Hostel movies and the second Human Centipede, I’d argue you’ve been through far worse than anything a Saw movie is going to do. You’re pretty much already hit bottom in terms of artless trash that fetishizes suffering.

That said, you and this chick should totally watch Wolf Creek to see the concept done right. And by right, I mean effectively. So, maybe in your case, done wrong…

-Tom

Agreed on Wolf Creek.

The only interesting thing about the SAW series is how the various directors and producers were so adamant about keeping some kind of dumb story going, but each one needed its own mystery. Consequently, you get a lot of stupid retcons and nonsensical reveals that get more convoluted as the series progressed. Also, because the stories had to keep some of the same characters, you end up with people playing larger parts than their acting chops could handle.

Do what I did. Ignore the goofball torture stuff and just make fun of the dumbass plots and twists.

I feel better.

Wolf Creek, Funny Games, or hell even A Clockwork Orange are all better takes on ‘brutal horror’.

But seriously, don’t be that guy. And, if you make it more than 30 minutes into any of those movies you are probably doing it wrong anyway.

I’m intrigued by Wolf Creek because it sounds like more the kind of horror I can handle and maybe even enjoy. Shock and violence and even torture isn’t what gets me, so much as the helplessness and utter doom overlapped with horrible suffering you find in the torture porn films. Any time the victim can actually, even kinda sorta, fight back and actually stands a chance of making it, I feel like I have someone I can root for and redeems the experience a bit for me*. I’m afraid the “that guy” reference whooshed over my head in this context, though, as well as the rest of what you said.

*Please don’t spoil it if that’s not actually the case in Wolf Creek. It sounds like it’s still supposed to be a good film and I may watch whether or not anyone triumphs/survives.

I meant the “don’t be that guy” in reference to recommending the ‘better’ movies that we are talking about in favor of something she clearly likes.

Wolf Creek, Funny Games, et al are far more disturbing because they hit at a more psychological level. There is a lot more menace there. Saw is a bunch of shock, gore, and wince moments which is why they are so popular. They are gross, but overall silly and safe.

The SAW series, Nick? Really? SAW?

Let me guess: when you were in the military, you were one of those poor guys who had to lug around an M249? :)

-Tom

The bad filmmaking is easy to forget, but if you feel you are still recovering from the (understandable) damage caused by these other films, a Saw marathon may set you back a number of weeks or even months in that recovery. I will be that guy and tell you to reconsider if the woman is worth this price. If you proceed, at least make sure you stop at Saw 2 (in fact Saw 1 is a decent horror movie).

I’ve only ever seen the first one, but its reputation for being gory and cringe-inducing is a bit off base. It sets up situations that would be those things, and then mostly cuts away and doesn’t show them. Particularly the titular “saw” moment.

Hahahaha…oh my!

I just want to say that anything that creates a situation where empathy is a problem is a problem. I know you know this, but I just need to say in the face of torture porn your empathy is a virtue.