March 19, 2010
Professor Meehan
“A Theory of Re-creation within Thyself”
You see this man trapping his victims and killing them in brutal and what seems as unjustified ways. What you may not recognize is that this film of “Saw II” maybe seen as a simple plot of gruesome killings, but this movie has more insight to offer. This movie is a theory of a psychological re-creation within these victims. This same theory of creation has a connection to the same theory of creation as Victor did in Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein.” John Kramer (Jigsaw) puts individuals in his traps to represent their immoral flaws in life. Through these traps, Jigsaw wants his victims to gain a “psychological transformation” and correct these flaws in order to pass on the “lesson” of understanding and appreciating the meaning of life. In “Saw II” the second movie of this series, Jigsaw’s traps are actually a representation of him doing an internal killing of a monster inside of his victims as Victor created a monster physically. Jigsaw’s recreation of his victims in “Saw II,” in my view, is a hidden “Frankenstein” plot. This is represented by him “internally” re-creating his victims based on their immoral flaws.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is a plot of Victor, a scientist, physically creating a person and “perform[ing] miracles” through science (Shelley 53). His love for science leads him to this path of creation of his own monster. Victor uses technology and scientific application to bring his monster alive. These same types of elements of creation can be found within this movie “Saw II.” While Victor creates a person physically, jigsaw has his own form of a mental creation within his victims, this can be known as a psychological transformation. Jigsaw is trying to change the flaws of his victims through his traps in order for them to understand and appreciate life. The final scene of “Saw II” can represent this transformation. At the end of the movie, this transformation is shown by the “test” of detective Matthew’s patience and becoming a better dad/cop (Bousman 2005). His test was his son, Daniel, in a house with seven strangers. This detective had a simple choice to stay in the same room with jigsaw and just have a simple conversation about his flaws until the end of the game. With that conversation in that time limit, he would get a reward of a reunion with his son. Matthews decided to not listen to Jigsaw and goes to the house where he believes that his son is, but instead is a trap of containment for the rest of his life. This is a representation of the consequences of Matthews failing his “test,” thus failing to allow a new psychological transformation within himself and learning how to perfect his immorals. This represents Matthews failing this transformation stage of gaining new values and fixing his flaws. For example, in Frankenstein’s creation scene, he has a lot gadgets and methods that he uses to bring his monster alive. Well, with jigsaw these strangers in this house are the gadgets and methods that he uses to bring alive the new person he wants inside of Matthews.
This final scene has many elements which add to this theory of creation just like the Frankenstein creation scene with Victor. First, this scene actually has two elements of “Frankenstein” in one. It has flashbacks of the gruesome killings of the victims that were in the house as they failed to pass their test of that psychological transformation. Blood everywhere death around every corner, and to think that those victims were there because of detective Matthews and the “monster” living within himself. These flashbacks represent not only the creation scene of Victor’s monster but also the death scene of his wife, Elizabeth. Both of these scenes directly represent the transformation that jigsaw wants from his victims because in this final scene of “Saw II” death is being demonstrated by these victims dying while there is a creation of Matthews trying to take place. This is shown by his decision to disobey jigsaw’s commands (failing his transformation process). This can relate to the death scene of Victor’s wife because first, Victor and jigsaw has the same emotional response of sorrow to their deaths. Victor is upset that his creation killed his wife while jigsaw is upset that his victim did not go through his metaphoric creation of a new person. Also, another element in this correlation between these scenes is theme of birth and death. In this movie Jigsaw says “You must meet death in order to be reborn” (Bousman 2005). This element relates to “Frankenstein” because after his monster brutally kills his new wife Elizabeth, Victor tries to bring her back (rebirth). He tries to reconstruct her new birth as jigsaw tries to reconstruct a new birth within his victim (Matthews).
Towards the beginning of the scene there is dark lighting and as the plot is being revealed the lighting gets brighter. This is actually a review process of the test that Matthews is going through. This scene is in connection with Victor’s creation scene because it has scientific application involved and the technique of using machines. Victor creates his monster with technical machines while jigsaw kills his monster with a “psychological machine” of using these victims to represent his flaws. Each and every one of these victims where in the house because they had some connection to Matthews and his flaws. These victims are being used as a machine, the same way Victor used machines to create his monster. These victims are being used to transform Matthews by forcing him to learn a lesson of his flaws. The difference between these two creation scenes are the physical and mental realities of them. Victor’s monster is being physically created from head to toe while Jigsaw monster (victim) is being transformed on a more mental level and have a change of values and views. Both of these scenes have a connection to applying scientific application to “human nature” (Shelley 59).
The element of fear and sacrifice relates “Frankenstein” and “Saw II.” In this final scene of “Saw II” the elements of fear and sacrifice are represented with the flashbacks of Matthews’ test. Fear is shown as the victims went through there test and sacrifice is shown as one by one these victims lost their lives. Jigsaw is demonstrating a somewhat beneficial sacrifice of others for a greater cause of good. The traps that Jigsaw put all these victims in, to test Matthews are a direct correlation to their external fears (phobias). Jigsaw uses these phobias against these victims because they are making immoral decisions. So, these people are not really victims because they put themselves in this situation of becoming part of this sacrifice. These tests are not only for Matthews but are sub-tests for the seven people in the house to recognize their flaws as well. Jigsaw wants these people to change for the better, so he wants them to have an internal fear of staying immoral and less humane.
In Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” the close reading of the text suggests the elements of fear and sacrifice. Fear is represented from Victor when the monster threatens him with saying “…I will cause fear…” (Shelley 129), and Victor replies, “I intend… to reason…” (Shelley 129). This demonstrates that by the monster threatening Victor, he has no choice but to comply with his demands (because of his fear). Sacrifice is demonstrated in this scene by Victor stating to the monster before he refused to make another companion, “…you may torture me, but I will never consent” (Shelley 128). From this quote Victor is sacrificing everything he cares for (Elizabeth) by not taking his monster’s threats seriously. The monster is willing to sacrifice his exploration of the world for the need and love of a companion, “I swear to you, by the earth which I inhabit…with the companion you bestow….” (Shelley 130). His monster is willing to sacrifice roaming around earth in order to have a companion, but Victor does not fall for it. Victor has suffered a lot from this creation, which shows that there are consequences with playing the role of God. Just like how the victims of Jigsaw did not gain their new lesson of life that he wanted them to learn (through their traps).
The different aspect of the film demonstrates fear and sacrifice to the viewers. In “Saw II,” the final scene, the audience understands the fear of the victims by there being a tremendous amount of blood. During the flashbacks in this final scene, Matthews and the other seven victims had blood on them as the scene only shows a short clip of each of the seven victims. This 5-10 second clip with blood present on their body suggests their fear of going through this “transformation” of becoming a new person. Blood is one of the main elements that suggests fear to the audience because it represents death itself or near death experiences. Matthews of course is shown with the most blood because this plot is all about his transformation. He is the reason why all of the victims are there (also with their sub-Transformations). This leads to sacrifice, the camera angles of this final scene leads to dark lighting. This dark lighting in the final scene suggests the fact that the victims are sacrificing themselves to the “Transformation” process of Matthews. Victims being attacked or sacrificed by the monster or killer usually represent dark lighting. Between that 5-10 second time intervals the victims have blood on them with a dark lighting, which now you know means that they fear going into their own Transformation process and they are being sacrificed in order for Matthews to have his.
In comparison with each other, both Victor and Jigsaw, in the end, is disappointed with their creation of “new life.” Victor’s monster goes off and kills his lovely bride and has his “beauty of [his] dream vanished.”(Shelley 61). Victor wants his creation to disappear from his life because his dream from the beginning of that creature was now vanished. Jigsaw’s dream of his re-creation of his victim (Matthews) was also vanished. It was vanished not because his monster harmed his lifestyle or took something or someone away from him, but because he did not pass the test of gaining new values and a new self. So, by Matthews not passing the test, he failed the creation process and transformation of a new self within in him. This can be similar to when Victor realized that he was disappointed in his actions of creating his own monster, because of the responsibility of being that monster’s father. If the values and goals of these two creators are compared then Jigsaw values his attempts of re-creation within in victims while Victor soon regrets it. Both these creators have the same goal of applying the scientific method to reaching miracles but one supports it while the author disgraces it. Also, what connects these two creators is the twisted “Father-Son” element of these stories. Victor is the father of his monster while Jigsaw is the father of his victim by showing his victim a new way of life and appreciating it. “Saw II” can be represented as another “Frankenstein” plot not by there just being science used in the movie, but the significance and consequences of “creation” being shown (Shelley 54). Jigsaw uses these horror traps to create a theory of “rebirth” inside of his victims as Victor uses his machines to create an actual living person. “Saw II” is a hidden “Frankenstein” story because he has the same goal of wanting to be a creator of changing human nature and controlling it. Elements like fear and sacrifice bring these two together in comparison with each other. From my personal experience I never would have thought that these two different pieces would have a connection to each other, but by finding these elements, they are alike. This represents that readers cannot just view this movie plot as a gruesome non-meaning horror scene. It can be viewed as a psychological movie that has a lot of “Frankenstein” elements that requires deeper thinking than just being terrified by the movie.
Reflect: I feel this essay will be my best work yet. My skills of analysis has gotten better and my syntax also. What I feel I need to work on is my grammar and my word choice.
Honor Code: I pledge my word of honor that I have abided by the Washington College Honor Code while completing this assignment. M.M.
Bibliography
1.) Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. 2nd ed. Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martin, 2000. 40-70. Print.
2.) “Saw II,” Darren Lynn Bousman. Twisted Pictures. Lion Gate Films. 2005.
