Saw X (2023)

[Foggy]

Originally Posted by OldPangYau

I'm just more amused due to the fact that NONE of them have been fresh, not even the original, yet suddenly the tenth entry of a franchise has the best reviews... not something you see often, lol. Granted, it'll probably tumble at least into the 60s, but still, that's glowing for this series. I'm also seeing it tonight, so I'm certainly more excited the more I read about it!

I think it’s a taste and age thing. Twenty years ago Saw was considered shocking and depraved in the eyes of a far more conservative press circuit, and particularly screen violence was a hot button topic. Even so the film was fairly polarising over outright derided. We’re now 20 years removed (and 10-15 years removed from the height of the franchise popularity) so there’s probably a good mixture of younger viewers who have caught the films growing up are now reviewing films for a living, the moral panic around these films has now began to settle down and an element of respect for the ickiness around the film can be found.

Throw in that it’s probably a decent film to boot, and that it’s a relatively back to basics approach that uses the best elements of the franchise, comparative to the more convoluted and tired instalments, and I imagine critics are being more relaxed and embracing the series for what it is this time around.