[Film Review] Spiral: From The Book of Saw (2021)

After a little over a year, cinemas and theaters in certain countries are opening up and productions are finally releasing long awaited films. Spiral (2021) was an obvious yet wild ride, returning as the ninth instalment to the Saw franchise. I'm sure you’re asking, what more could be done?   

Director Darren Lynn Bousman makes a comeback after his success in Saw II (2005), Saw III  (2006) and Saw IV (2007) giving fans of the franchise a bit more ease and hope. Bousman handles the job well enough but the film also shows evidence that it was no easy feat to incorporate a new formula. Spiral follows Detective Banks, played by none other than superstar and comedian Chris Rock. As a new wave of Jigsaw killings start up again the hunt for who is behind it all begins. This concept is pretty solid and quite similar to the original film Saw (2004) with Detective Tapp (Danny Glover) however, if Spiral was designed to freshen up the franchise, it would have avoided the use of easter eggs and constant call backs to the original films in order to let this new story stand on its own. Instead we are given yet another Jigsaw copycat who’s MO is muddy and personal. 

The film succeeds in the stunning practical effects; there is nothing better than gritty, realistic looking blood and guts in a horror film rather than a CGI mishap. The execution of the new kills were creative - from the ripped tongue to the hot wax, our copycat killer dawns the iconic pig mask but unfortunately hides behind a distorted high pitched voice that is not as nail biting as John Kramer himself. We are also surprised with a new horrific yet slightly adorable vesle of evil, a marionette pig puppet named ‘Mr. Snuggles’ coined on the official Saw Twitter account that not only serves as a representation of “pig cops” but sticks within the realm of the iconography of Saw. Mr. Snuggles is no Billy the puppet, but his familiar form and doll-creepiness serves its purpose.

Horror is a rare space for A-list actors to star in and is more so a jumping off point for many such as Kevin Bacon in Friday the 13th (1980), Jennifer Aniston in Leprechaun (1993), and Johnny Depp in A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984). However neither Chris Rock or Samuel L. Jackson’s stardom added much to the genre or the franchise -  their father son relationship is the most believable thing about the entire movie yet the writing for this film did not lend itself to more than mediocre acting. Samuel L. Jackson’s character, Chief Banks, is not a character at all, it's just Jackson as himself, and while Chris Rock manages to play a decent role as the hated ‘rat’ cop, his dialogue throughout is cringe-worthy with excessive male toxicity and constantly stating the obvious. 

Of course the franchise is not sophisticated horror, it’s not Hereditary (2018) or Midsommar (2019), Saw is a franchise that prides itself on being good ole nasty fun. Where Spiral lacked is exactly that, although Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson are able to bring in a bit of comic relief, there are moments where the comedy feels misplaced and uncomfortable. Spiral, although meant to be released last year, presents us with a story that is not only relevant to today but has been for years. It gives us a pervasive topic but the main lesson of this Jigsaw copy-cat is that hate never learns its lesson.  

For the ninth film, the traps are inventive but the best one out of all, Lionsgate released online about two days before the movie's full release. This could be seen as a lack of confidence in the film's ability to perform in box office sales whilst also trying to amp up the excitement to see more. Either way, we have a killer that evidently creates borderline inescapable traps but with clever riddles and one liners to accompany them. Like many of the blindly vengeful apprentices like Amanda (Shawnee Smith) and Mark Hoffman (Costas Mandylor) this killer may set the victim up for victory but it doesn’t seem like they want them to escape. 

Furthermore Spiral takes on some of the heaviest subject matter we’ve ever seen in a Saw film; police reform, brutality, and corruption. This is not the first time we have ever seen strong messaging about race in film and more specifically in horror. Films like Candyman (1992), Get Out (2017), and The Purge (2013). What makes Spiral different is that eventually we come to the conclusion that it's not a commentary about the bad apples but a spotlight on all who play a huge part in the corruption. From those bad apples to their colleagues who help to cover it up while communities continue to suffer. 

Spiral (2021) gives us a washed out cop drama with truly just a sprinkle of the gore and horror. There is an imbalance of the traits that fans love about the franchise that are missing. Saw is not only a practice in torture porn, but also a puzzle and conversation piece, one you sit with and contemplate after leaving the theater. Spiral has no mystery and lacks a true twist, all clues and evidence are handed over in baby blue Tiffany & Co. gift boxes and the answer is in everyone's face. These suspectful and shocking aspects are what was needed to drive the story as well as keep it organized. The franchise may be very convoluted already but we are hoping to see a boost in the franchise with fresh faces and creativity like no other. Either way, this may be a film you need to see more than once to better see the highlights - as a die hard Saw fan you may be disappointed, but if this is your appetizer, a taste test to the franchise, I would say it's a pretty decent start.

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