When it comes to popular horror franchises, only a few have left both a considerable influence on pop culture as well as being long-lasting as that of the Saw franchise. Beginning as a solo horror/thriller flick in 2004, the first Saw not only became a box office smash but achieved cult-classic status with it spawning 8 other sequels in its franchise before Hollywood's bold attempt at reimagining the series with Spiral: From The Book Of Saw. Boasting a story that was pitched to the studio by comedian Chris Rock with him also serving as the films main star along with receiving Executive Producer credit, Spiral aims to move the franchise into a more modern setting with a spin-off story which embraces the legacy of the previous films, while conducting its own copy-cat killer style plot. Spiral: From The Book Of Saw is the ninth installment of the popular series with it possessing the same graphic torture elements, which made the series appealing to horror fans in the first place with its clever concept of a killer who traps his victims and forces them to play a deadly game of survival as a form of them seeking redemption for past evil deeds, connecting both the past era of the series together with the present simultaneously. The newest addition to the Saw series doesn't stray away from any of the original films key plot points, and builds upon them with a new concept that feels both fresh and relevant to today's world. With Spiral attempting to give the franchise a much needed makeover given that the series began to fizzle out around the release of Saw V along with the new film combining the talents of Saw ll director as well as Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson in the main roles, the question that horror fans have is whether the new spin-off film in the Saw series succeeds in officially revamping it. The attempt that Spiral takes to reinvigorate the franchise is a noble one that's well-intended, though the end result ends up feeling like a typical installment in the Saw series rather than being the rebirth the franchise needed in resetting itself for its modern setting. To the most ardent fans of the Saw, Spiral serves as being mildly entertaining although its attempts to bring something new to the table won't win over any new fans as its overall execution doesn't match the enthusiasm that its main star clearly has for the series new twist.
The story for Spiral: From The Book Of Saw centers around a detective (Chris Rock) hunting down a criminal mastermind whose unleashing a twisted form of justice against crooked police officers. The plot for Spiral stays true to the main theme of the Saw franchise in which people are forced to confront their sins and atone for them with the opportunity to be spared if they survive their torturous ordeal. The main twist with the storyline for From The Book Of Saw is rather than it being regular people targeted by the serial killers continuing the work of John Kramer, aka Jigsaw, the new copycat killer targets corrupt cops working together in a compromised police station with Chris Rock's character putting the pieces together. It's not a question of whether the plot for Spiral is strong enough to reboot the franchise as it serves as being clever along with arriving at the appropriate time given the rising stature of Black Lives Matter along with a more critical eye being taken towards cops, it's the way the story is executed that lacks the thrill of the original James Wan film. Spiral wants to be a film that separates itself from every previous sequel in the franchise and essentially be the film that puts the franchise back on the map, but it ends up feeling more like an average horror film in the series rather than a substantial game changer. Despite its shortcomings, the film isn't a total failure and works as being a reasonably entertaining spin-off if one doesn't expect too much from it. Given that this is Chris Rock's passion project, one can see the actors excitement behind telling the story even if his acting isn't up to par with being dramatic enough for the film. Spiral: From The Book Of Saw doesn't quite achieve what it initially sets out to do nor suggests a bright new future for the Saw franchise, but there's enough of what fans love about the series that's present to make it work as a worthy enough entry, even if both its plot twists and end reveal lean on the side of being a bit predictable.
One of the more interesting elements of Spiral is the acting delivered by its main cast. For actor Chris Rock, his inclusion with the Saw franchise is striking given that audiences know him mainly for his comedic roles despite his minimally effective performance in New Jack City. If one is going into this movie expecting Chris Rock to deliver a phenomenally serious performance, they'll be disappointed to discover that his work here isn't anything impressive to gloat about. Rock clearly tries in his role as Det. Ezekiel Banks to be a more serious-toned and straight-forward version of himself in comparison to what audiences have been accustomed to, but his performance is ultimately passable at best with much of it feeling awkward in regards to his facial expressions, along with his attempts at being genuinely angry or frustrated. As hard as Rock tries to be serious in his main role here, he doesn't fully shed his comedic side as audiences are treated to his intentionally humerous Quentin Tarantino style commentary on Forrest Gump, as well as his thoughts on a potential sequel. When it comes to audiences buying him as an outcast detective whose deemed as being untrustworthy by his department for turning in a dirty cop, Rock for the most part gets the job done and is fairly convincing though never exhibits strong acting abilities. Samuel L. Jackson once again chews up the scenery as Rock's father and former police Captain Marcus Banks. Jackson doesn't shy away from performing his traditional trademark persona here with him being allowed the opportunity to say the F-word numerous times in the film, making audiences satisfied that he's being given the opportunity to just be Samuel L. Jackson. Max Minghella impresses as Bank's rookie partner Det. William Schenk with Minghella effectively portraying his character as being a young and idealistic cop, who aspires to team up with Bank's in catching the new Jigsaw copycat killer much to the latter's objection. Marisol Nichols gives a noteworthy performance as Bank's tough-as-nails Capt. Angie Garza. The rest of the cast deliver effective performances with the brief amounts of screentime they have with Zole Palmer as Kara Boswick, Genelle Williams as Lisa Banks, Richard Zeppieri as Det. Fitch, and Dan Petronijevic as Det. Marv Bozwick. As far as the films acting goes, the cast for Spiral give performances that are essentially what one would expect to see out of a typical Saw flick which is work that's convincing enough for the audience to take the story seriously in terms of believability, but is nothing phenomenal to write home about. The supporting cast performs as well as they're allowed to given their limitations as Rock's, Minghella, and Jackson's characters command the most screentime. Out of the three actors, it is Rock that had the most to prove to audiences with his performance with him being just serviceable enough to make his character work. Given that audiences don't particularly go to a Saw film looking for stellar acting, they'll be a little surprised to see the efforts that the main cast put into making the story work as terrifying as possible.
Bringing back Darren Lynn Bousman who previously helmed Saw ll, lll, and IV, Bousman returns to the franchise and gives Spiral an appearance that feels in line with the rest of the series, while also looking sharper on the big screen. Bousman stays true to the series gory elements with Spiral boasting some of the most gruesome moments of the franchise which include a stunning opening sequence involving a character being stuck to a trap in the Subway by his tongue, that's also followed by a sequence involving wax. Both sequences prove to be hugely effective in scaring the audience while staying true to the series early roots. In terms of cinematography, both Bousman and DP Jordan Oram fill the screen with the films primary colors being filmed in a 2:35:1 scope aspect ratio that gives it a more slick look in comparison to the previous Saw films. The story is fast-paced with the film carrying a running time of 93 minutes, which never makes it feel like its wearing out its welcome. The score by franchise composer Charlie Clouser is handled well with the iconic Saw theme making its return here in a form that makes it effective once again. In terms of directing, Bousman knows how a Saw film should look and goes about giving audiences that dark and mysterious tone while providing them with a solid new batch of traps, which shows that the franchise hasn't missed a beat in regards to creativity. Outside of James Wan who helmed the first, Bousman is the strongest director in the series with him giving the film a more sharper and digital look that allows the audience to see every gruesome image of the films torture scenes in clear detail.
The screenplay for Spiral written by Josh Stolberg and Peter Goldfinge from a story by Chris Rock doesn't maximize its full potential despite introducing new twists and themes to the plot, that could've moved the franchise in a newer direction had they'd been properly explored. The script for Spiral tackles themes regarding police corruption, crooked cops, the use of excessive force to make the streets more peaceful, false testimonies to put innocent people away, deception within one's own precinct, and making the guilty atone and ultimately pay for their wrongdoing. The storyline for Spiral is one that's ripped to be apart of the Saw series as it continues the franchise torturous formula, while adding its own spin to the proceedings. Despite the strength of the plot, the overall screenplay itself feels a bit predictable with audiences being able to figure out the films big climactic twist early on in the story, along with certain subplots feeling similar to previous entries in the series. The film attempts to give audiences a buddy-cop partnership between the characters of John and Will, which often feels like a poor attempt to imitate what's already been done before prior with films such as 48 Hours and David Fincher's Seven. Their partnership for the most part feels both generic and predictable with audiences having already seen the subplot involving the main character refusing to have any partner in the story before begrudgingly doing so, handled previously in other films with results that were much more effective. The rest of the films side characters in the story all come across as feeling one-dimensional with them lacking personalities and carrying no other purpose in the film other than to move the plot along or fall prey to the new Jigsaw's set of traps. The films big end reveal also lacks both the shock factor and impact that the twists in the first few Saw films carried. The script for Spiral: From The Book Of Saw is full of ideas and themes that not only could revitalize the series for a new era of modern horror fans, but also carry weight and relevance with today's climate. The problem that the script encounters with tackling these themes, is as much as it wants to say something to audiences regarding police corruption and the abuse of power, the screenplay can't shake off the generic character and plot tropes that make it feel like a half-hearted attempt that shortchanges its potential to be something special. Instead of Spiral being the fantastic spin-off and reboot that's required in order to put the series back on the map, it settles for being average at best which is underwhelming given the potential the films plot carries.
Considering the amount of faith that both Chris Rock and the studio had in believing that the concept of Spiral would be what the franchise needed in terms of an effective reboot, it's a bit frustrating that they didn't give what they had the full effort needed to really make it work. Spiral desires to restore its franchise back to its former glory days when audiences looked forward in anticipation to seeing a new Saw flick each October. It also aspires to be taken seriously and presents themes that turns the series on its head, but its creators don't give the story the proper treatment and dedication it deserves. The film suffers from wanting to be an extension of the series along with the second being a more personal and character-driven detective story in the same vein as Seven. One of the main problems that the Saw franchise experienced that hindered the films in terms of their quality is the fact that none of the Jigsaw Copycat killers were as compelling nor give off the mystifying vibe that Tobin Bell possessed as John Kramer. Though the film unquestionably misses the mark in what it sets out to do for the series, it isn't a complete failure nor does it tarnish the legacy of the Saw franchise. One aspect of the film that could be commended is its devotion in remaining faithful to the gory aspect of the series with the newest entry being quite possibly the most brutal installment yet in regards to the way the new killer brutally tortures his victims. As far as ranking goes, Spiral stands as being one of the better entries in the series with it being entertaining and gory enough to quench horror fans thirst in the moment. Considering however, that its main star has publicly expressed a desire to branch out from his traditional comedic routine and further explore the horror genre with Spiral being used as a vessel in his venture to do so, the film doesn't necessarily build a compelling enough case for Chris Rock to effectively abandon his comedic roots in exchange for permanently embracing horror despite his effort of doing so being a noble one. Given the creators intent behind making the movie in hopes of revolutionizing the Saw brand, it should be much more than just passable entertainment.
Final Verdict: For Saw fans, Spiral: From The Book Of Saw proves to be a respectable entry in the series, although it won't win any fans outside of its loyal base.
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