Torture porn is a great term. "Torture" is not a genre of film like "action", "comedy" or "horror". These are horror films where all the excitement is derived by seeing a number of people put in elaborate torture and murder devices, and watching these assholes get splayed and mutilated. I'm not sure I'd put the first two Saw movies in this category, they attempt to have a story, but by the third one it's just a series of torture vignettes tied together by a thin story. They're built like pornographic films. I would never considerate a real film genre, there shouldn't be a "torture porn" section in the video store, but I don't think it's a misnomer.
I disagree that the later SAW films only have a thin story for the purpose of violence, although obviously the story supports the violence. I don't think that's why these films are so enjoyable to people like me, who hated the Hostels and don't generally enjoy horror as a rule.
But then, I do like and embrace the term torture porn, and think it should be applied to the SAWs.
Ahh! I loved Saw VI. I have been waiting 3 years to find out
Spoilers:
what was in Amanda's letter
Heh.
I want to watch all of them over a weekend or something in the near future. Some of the gore is eye-covering-hide-on-my-boyfriend's-shoulder-oh-my-god-crazy but in a lot of cases it's more ridiculous entertainment.
I just think the major difference between Saw and Hostel is that Hostel didn't really have much of a story. Saw seems like a huge puzzle (haw haw) where it's very satisfying to find the hidden person or meaning behind things. Hostel is the reason people call it torture porn. I sat through the first one- hated it- and refuse to waste my time on the second one.
I admit, the Hoffman/ Straughn which is which confusion got to me too at first.
I guess I'm not the most normal girl out there as far as my taste in film. It's bad. I'll be the first to say that. I pretty much only watch horror movies and I'm always delighted when I can sit in a theater with my guy and shriek at something awful or realize after a tense moment in the movie that I've got a white-knuckled grip on his arm. That's fun. I tend to get that out of Saw so I hope they keep bringing 'em. Can't wait for VII.
yeah, i think saw gets lumped in with the "torture porn" flicks a bit too much. i think it's more that there were movies influenced by saw, that missed some of the ...cleverness, i guess. i seem to remember that there were a ton of saw/hostel imitators in the early half of the decade that seemed to feel that gore equaled horror. that's where i think some of the torture porn label is appropriate.
can't say much for the later saw films, having not seen them, but the first two, at least, seemed to have enough story that i wouldn't classify them as "torture porn".
The story/game elements definitely set the series apart.
Part of what I realized about Saw VI - it's actually a REVENGE movie at heart - there's no lessons that are trying to be taught, its all about payback.
The story/game elements definitely set the series apart.
Part of what I realized about Saw VI - it's actually a REVENGE movie at heart - there's no lessons that are trying to be taught, its all about payback.
Spoiler:
Exactly!
John's grand scheme was a big "FUCK YOU" to all the people that fucked him over in life. He wasn't the righteous avenger we were led to believe in the first 5 movies. He's not as "pure" as we thought and I think it makes all the things he did (especially the manipulation of Amanda) all the more wicked.
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Helio Gracie -> Rickson Gracie -> Pedro Sauer -> Allen Hopkins -> Steve Miller -> Me (blue belt)
The story/game elements definitely set the series apart.
Part of what I realized about Saw VI - it's actually a REVENGE movie at heart - there's no lessons that are trying to be taught, its all about payback.
Spoiler:
I'd assume that Saw VII will be as well, since Hoffman won't be very happy.
John's grand scheme was a big "FUCK YOU" to all the people that fucked him over in life. He wasn't the righteous avenger we were led to believe in the first 5 movies. He's not as "pure" as we thought and I think it makes all the things he did (especially the manipulation of Amanda) all the more wicked.
Spoiler:
Oh, I think he still thinks of himself as a righteous avenger. But its all a self-delusion.
But its all a self-delusion.
DCU Megathread Justice League
Illuminati
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