Traps, twists and another sequel
And now, kiddies, a very important message from Twisted Pictures’ Mark Burg: “This movie is thematically all about cooperation, about learning to work with people, not just by yourself. You can accomplish more with a partner or a teammate in life.”
You’d think he was talking about some upcoming family fare. Think again. Who says there’s nothing educational to glean from the Saw franchise? That’s right. Burg, who has overseen every Saw film with partner Oren Koules, speaks of the latest chapter, Saw V, which is hitting theaters on October 24th.
This week distributor Lionsgate held a cocktail reception where press got to mingle with the cast and crew of the latest installment. An event like this is like dining with the CIA. It’s every man for himself. Everything is a secret. No one can tell you anything. Still, Shock pressed Burg, production designer-cum-director David Hackl (taking over for II – IV director Darren Bousman) and Saw V leading man Costas Mandylor (who plays Detective Hoffman) for as many details as we could get.
“We first started talking to Hackl about wanting to be a director around Saw III,” explains Burg with a laugh. ” I’m convinced he had a couple of traps that he knew he had that he wouldn’t give Darren [Bousman]. We did the deal with him to direct Saw V before we did Saw IV. So, during IV he must’ve had a couple of traps up his sleeve.”
He may be right. Hackl beams with pride when he tells us there are seven sadistic traps on display in his chapter. And if you thought the opening of IV was gruesome (Viva La Autopsy!), “Our opening is…it’s something,” smiles Hackl. “People turn away in the editing room when they come in and see it. Our composer, Charlie Clouser, can’t even watch it.”
“The traps we have in this movie are simple but scary and spooky as all hell,” Burg adds. “One requirement with the traps is that they have to be anything you can buy at the Home Depot.”
Fans can rest assured part five, written once again by Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton, will move the film forward rather than in a lateral direction – such as what Saw IV did. “I think we made it a little too complex,” reflects Burg. “To this day I still hear people who didn’t get that it happened at the same time [as part III]. Maybe we didn’t do a good enough job in executing it, in all honesty. But Saw V is a little more linear, easier to follow. We’ll have two great twists at the end. My hats off to Patrick and Marcus, I don’t know how they do it.”
“What I liked about Saw IV is that you got to see why Jigsaw went nuts,” Mandylor says, exuding his appreciation for how Hoffman has evolved from a man of the law to a disciple of Jigsaw (Tobin Bell reprising his role). “In part V you get to see why I get dragged into it, why I catch [Jigsaw’s] eye and why I get fucked up. And it’s a pretty good reason. All I know is that everyone dies and I live and I’m very grateful for it.”
In Saw V, Hoffman’s allegiance to Jigsaw is threatened to be made public and the detective is forced to “eliminate all loose ends.” “I get some really good heavy scenes with Tobin,” the actor adds. “That was good for me because I get into his head, to see how he began. All I did was learn from [Bell]. He would call me for little rehearsals. It’s more than knowing just the lines, it about getting into his brain.”
Mandylor concedes he’ll return for Saw VI (“There will be death,” he whispers), a chapter that’s already on the lips of the producers and will be directed by series editor Kevin Greutert.
“[Writers] Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan came in recently to discuss Saw VI,” says Burg. “We end Saw V where you’re like, ‘Oh, f**k, what happens now?’ We’ve got a great idea for Saw VI. We’ve got a great beginning, a couple of themes we want to play around with and we’ve got a great twist ending. So, now it’s how do we get from A to B?”
Keep it here for more snippets from our evening with the Saw V gang!
Source: Ryan Rotten
