For fans of the Saw franchise who have been craving for some torture porn, the new instalment has hit the screens around the world today. Most international publications have claimed it’s a treat for the loyalists, some called it “the most effective” of the horror series so far, while a few complained that it’s excessive. (Also Read: Spiral movie review: Chris Rock’s silly Saw reboot swears by stupidity)

Best of the franchise

A flattering review by Digital Spy states, “Where the Saw series had gotten increasingly elaborate with its traps, Saw X strips it back to the more lo-fi charms of the first two movies. The large-scale traps of the later sequels might have increased the gore, but they lessened the impact.”

The same review claims that Saw X would attract not only the loyal fans, but also newcomers. “Saw X might still deliver the gore you’d expect from a Saw outing, yet in attempting to do something new and not just the same-old, it’s potentially injected the series with fresh blood,” the review states.

For the fans

Another review, by The Hollywood Reporter, issues a friendly disclaimer that Saw X is only for the fans who can stomach the signature gore. It states, “This is the sort of horror film in which a character using someone’s intestines as a lasso is simply par for the course.”

It also celebrates the return of Tobin Bell as the menacing character of Jigsaw. “None of this would work nearly as well without Bell, whose raspy voice and menacing gravitas are so riveting that he makes Jigsaw’s oft-repeated declaration ‘I’d like to play a game’ scary as hell,” states the review.

Excessive torture porn

The Variety review seems to be more of a warning than a disclaimer. It states, “Tobin Bell, with his stare of pitiless wisdom, is also a draw, but Saw X raises the issue of how much of John Kramer’s hand-wringing is too much.”

Saw X, directed by Kevin Greutert, and written by Peter Goldfinger and Josh Stolberg, is a direct sequel to the first Saw instalment, which released in 2004, and a prequel to Saw II (2005).