SAW II: Widescreen Edition DVD & UMD Video For PSP Combined Review

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Title: SAW II: Widescreen Edition & UMD Video For PSP

Region: One

Genre: Horror

Stars: Donnie Wahlberg, Franky G, Glen Plummer, Beverly Mitchell, Dina Meyer, Emmanuelle Vaugier, Shawnee Smith, and Tobin Bell

Writers: Leigh Whannell and Darren Lynn Bousman

Director: Darren Lynn Bousman

Feature length: 92 minutes

DVD Extras: Audio Commentary With Director Darren Lynn Bousman and Actors Donnie Wahlberg and Beverly Mitchell, Jigsaw’s Game Featurette, “Bits And Pieces” – The Props Of Saw II, The Traps Of Saw II, Storyboard To Completed Scene Comparisons, Conceptual Art Gallery, Trailers

DVD Languages: English Dolby Digital 5.1 EX Surround Sound and English Dolby Surround Sound

UMD Languages: English Stereo and English Dolby Headphone Track

DVD Subtitles: English Closed Captions and English and Spanish Language Subtitles

UMD Subtitles: English and Spanish Language Subtitles

DVD Packaging: Keep Case

DVD Chapter Stops: 24

UMD Chapter Stops: 15

DVD Sound: Dolby Digital 5.1 EX Surround Sound and Dolby Surround Sound

UMD Sound: Dolby Stereo and Dolby Headphone Track

Year of Theatrical Release: 2005/DVD Release: 2006/UMD Release 2006

Theatrical Distributor: Lionsgate Films

Home Video Distributor: Lionsgate Home Entertainment

MPAA Rating: R

Reviewer: Mark A. Rivera

It seems to happen to everyone sooner or later. There is a DVD we buy and somehow we end up not watching it even once for years. When you review films on various media like I do, it is a given fact since the work has to come first before one can kickback and relax. Yet regardless of what one does, we all have to be in the mood to see something in order to really enjoy it and often I have found that half the time I can get caught up on something already playing on TV, especially if it is supper time and whether or not anyone will admit it, the television has truly taken it’s own seat at the head of the virtual dinner table and much like a food combination like peanut butter and jelly, eating and watching the TV just seems to click. So it was that the first “SAW” film came into my possession after I purchased it and then soon found myself forgetting I even owned it as it gathered dust on one of my DVD library shelves. I had heard lots of good things about it, but somehow I just kept missing the motivation to sit down and see it for myself until finally Lionsgate Home Entertainment released the sequel on both DVD and UMD for PSP and provided me with copies to review. Obviously after all the word of mouth I knew I couldn’t watch “SAW II” without seeing “SAW” and somehow I managed not to find out who Jigsaw was until the film’s jaw dropping climax.

I watched “SAW” and “SAW II” back to back and regardless if you have seen the first film or not I highly recommend watching both together because it makes the experience of viewing the sequel better than if you waited a year apart to see each one whether it was between home video debuts or the original theatrical releases. While I have no doubt that people who read this review will know already who Jigsaw is from having seen the first film, I still feel obligated to keep the identity secret for those who have yet to see the first film because it is truly the kind of spoiler that would ruin the first viewing experience. Thus my comments will be somewhat general as it relates to the story in order to preserve the integrity of the first film’s surprises. I am not sure how long this sequel is supposed to take place after the original, but however long it takes victims from the first film to rot in a dank and murky place might give some a clue though I suppose the time between films is not as important as the idea of how time is used in the film. In “SAW II” Jigsaw is captured and while on the outside it may seem as though the police have the upper hand, Jigsaw truly has everything under control. As far as character is concerned, Jigsaw is in many ways sort of like the character of John Doe in “Seven.” Jigsaw is very methodical and like a chess player he seems to think four moves ahead of every opponent. Jigsaw also has a kind of moral chip upon the shoulder and places victims in a situation that forces them to make life or death sacrifices in order to live. These traps are insidious and cruel and also horrifying. The films in some ways reminds me of the first “Cube” film since the premise of being caught in a deadly maze whether it is within an ever shifting structure of cube like rooms or within a huge abandoned industrial building or house where the humans fall victim to traps like mice are not dissimilar. Once could argue that both movies depict cruel cases of behavioral observation of human behavior where because the clues seem so cryptic and the victims can’t seem to work together for the benefit of the group, they ultimately drop away like flies. Anyone could be caught in one of Jigsaw’s traps and that is what makes the films all the more frightening.

Dina Meyer, Shawnee Smith and Tobin Bell all reprise their roles from the first film and are joined by Donnie Wahlberg, Franky G, Glen Plummer, Beverly Mitchell, and Emmanuelle Vaugier, who seems to be in every Canadian produced genre film that ends up premiering on the SCI FI Channel as of late. Franky G goes over the top as a ruthless drug pusher who isn’t afraid of pushing anyone else in order to get what he wants. He’s big, mean, and intimidating as well as strong enough physically to pose a real threat to just about anyone who gets in his way. We get to learn more about the background of the new and returning characters in the film including Jigsaw’s past epiphany and how the backgrounds of the main characters from both films interrelate as a whole. The moody style combined with shaky and hyper kinetic editing of the first film is used well again here and while not quite as gripping as the first film’s twist, “SAW II” offers another surprising conclusion that remains true to the spirit of the first film. I only hope if there are any more sequels, Lionsgate will choose to end the franchise on a note that doesn’t repeat the first two films climaxes, like perhaps the next time maybe Jigsaw should be the one to find the game is over all too soon rather than the unwitting players. Regardless I just don’t want to see the series get run into the ground to a point where it no longer functions as a horror film or thriller and is now merely a pale shadow of what it once was.

Lionsgate Home Entertainment’s DVD edition presents “SAW II” in a (1.78:1) aspect ratio enhanced for 16 by 9 televisions. I have read that this is not the actual theatrical release aspect ratio, but having not seen the film on the big screen personally I cannot really comment especially since I am not even sure what the theatrical aspect ratio really was. What I can say is that the look of the film is appropriately gritty with a sick greenish tint that calls to mind among other things the idea that the characters are in a “matrix” of their own and the general sickness of both the situation and the twisted points of view each character adopts. The UMD for PSP version also presents “SAW II” in a (1.78:1) aspect ratio that perfectly fits the screen the Sony PlayStation Portable and while in the past I have found many UMD titles to contain a bit more detail than their standard definition DVD counterparts, in the case of “SAW II” I found the UMD for PSP picture quality to be equal to the DVD and no better or no worse. Where the two different home video versions differ is in the soundtrack options and extra features. The DVD features a lively English Dolby Digital 5.1 EX Surround Soundtrack as well as an English Dolby Surround Soundtrack. The UMD features an English Stereo Soundtrack, and an English Dolby Headphone Soundtrack, which somehow did not translate well at all when docked onto Dreamgear’s I, Sound Pro and given a virtual surround remix. English Closed Captions for the hearing impaired are encoded onto the DVD version while English and Spanish Language Subtitles are encoded onto both the DVD and UMD versions. Both editions feature animated menus that are easy to navigate, but only the UMD for PSP has full motion scene selections. Unfortunately the UMD for PSP has none of the extra value features the DVD has as noted below and is strictly a movie only release.

Exclusive to the DVD release is a feature length audio commentary with Director Darren Lynn Bousman and Actors Donnie Wahlberg and Beverly Mitchell. The commentary is detailed and screen specific with Wahlberg making some funny comments here and there as well as expressing his enchantment for the pretty Emmanuelle Vaugier. The DVD has a text dedication written by Director Darren Lynn Bousman regarding the passing of the film’s Producer Gregg Hoffman. Bonus featurettes include a short behind-the-scenes look at the film entitled “Jigsaw’s Game” and examinations of the various traps Jigsaw has set in the film that can be viewed individually or via a “Play All” feature. These segments are detailed as the “Head Trap” (4:24), “Needle Pit” (8:38), “Hand Trap” (2:53), and “Furnace” (4:04). A companion to this section is the “Bits And Pieces: The Props Of Jigsaw” (4:35) short, which gives viewer a more detailed glimpse into the various prosthetics and tricks used to bring the horrors to life in the film. Script to completed scene examinations for the “Death Mask” (3:41), “The Furnace” (3:24), “Needles In A Hay Stack” (2:45), and “Jigsaw’s Lair” (1:47) and a concept art gallery along with a trailer for “Saw II” (: 49) wrap up the extra value materials directly related to the film on this DVD release.

A reel of bonus DVD trailers for Lionsgate Home Entertainment’s “Saw: Uncut Edition”, “Three Extremes: Uncut”, “Audition”, “Tamara”, and “Ultimate Avengers: The Movie” conclude the materials exclusive to the DVD edition (8:08). “SAW II: Widescreen Edition” and “SAW II UMD Video For PSP” are available now at retailers on and offline courtesy of Lionsgate Home Entertainment.

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