When it comes to the Saw franchise, the installments certainly vary in quality but one sequel stands out as kind of the perfect entry in the series. While no one film in the franchise is actually a perfect movie, there’s one that delivers everything a fan could hope for.

In the eyes of a lot of people, 2004’s Saw is the best as it feels different from the rest, given that it’s more focused on being a tense thriller than overdoing it on things like gore. Though that’s true, the blood and gore are a big part of what audiences want from a Saw movie.

The latest installment, Saw X, has the best critical reviews of any, so it also has a case for the top spot. However, the ideal Saw movie is actually one that critics were displeased with and it’s actually much better than its meager 38% on Rotten Tomatoes rating.

Saw II Is Everything Fans Want From A Saw Movie

It’s The Perfect Amount Of Gore While Being Creative

The perfect movie for a fan of the series is Saw II. It might not have received the best reviews but it works so well because it has everything that fans could ask for from the franchise. A major selling point of Saw movies is the traps and Saw II features some of the most creative.

The infamous Needle Pit is the perfect example because it’s absolutely brutal and hard to watch, yet it doesn’t have to overdo the gore or blood level. That’s an issue some of the later movies had as they typically would just show butchery and gore for the sake of it.

In fact, none of the traps in Saw II go overboard, which was also something that worked in the first film. It’s often better to leave some bits up to the imagination of the viewer rather than just reveal or show everything up front.

This film also does well with its characters. None of them are particularly fleshed out beyond generic tropes of people who have been imprisoned and that’s actually okay here. You’re only really meant to root for Daniel and Amanda, while everyone else is fodder for the traps that the audience came to see in the first place.

Saw II Has The Best Twist In The Franchise After The Original

Amanda Revealed As Jigsaw’s Apprentice Is Perfect

The first Saw has one of the best endings in horror movie history, revealing that Jigsaw was the “ᴅᴇᴀᴅ” body all along. Each subsequent entry tried to live up to that with mixed results. The theorized and expected Dr. Gordon reveal in Saw 3D was solid enough, while the “everyone should’ve worked together” twist in Saw V missed the mark.

Saw II was the only sequel that came even close to what the original delivered. Detective Eric Matthews rushed to find his son, only for the film to reveal that Daniel was fine and Eric just had to sit and talk with Jigsaw until the time ran up. He was then attacked and woke up in a dark room.

That’s when it was revealed that Amanda, who was part of the game, was Jigsaw’s new apprentice. It worked well because it added to the idea that Jigsaw had saved her. She was going down a terrible path and now valued life, which was what Jigsaw always wanted.

Although the third film took Amanda down a disappointing path, this set the stage for something that had a lot of potential. Seeing Amanda actually take over for Jigsaw and do things the way he wanted could’ve improved future sequels.

Tobin Bell Steals The Show In Saw II

The Actor Gets To Shine In The Sequel

As cool as the Jigsaw reveal in the first film was, the one problem with it was that we didn’t get to see much of Tobin Bell playing the character. He’s only really seen as a hospital patient in a short scene and then he stands up in the final moment for the big reveal.

That’s fixed in Saw II as it puts a shining light on the actor and Bell really gets to sink his teeth into the role of John Kramer. He’s caught by the police in a very early scene, leading to him going back and forth with Donnie Wahlberg’s Eric Matthews throughout.

The fact that we get so much from Bell here is another reason why Saw II is so good. He’s bedridden in Saw III and is only seen via flashbacks in the subsequent installments. Considering the critical reception for Saw X, which features a lot of Bell, Saw is at its best when we get the most Tobin Bell.

Saw II Isn’t Bogged Down By Overdone Lore

Later Films Tried Too Hard To World-Build

As a franchise progresses, the world of the series usually needs to be built upon and expanded with lore. That started to happen here with Saw IV as with Jigsaw ᴅᴇᴀᴅ, flashbacks revealed more about his past. These aspects of the films were messy, inconsistent, and bogged down the storyline.

Saw II benefits from not having to worry about that. There isn’t a focus on anything like flashbacks or diving deeper into who John was or why he does what he does. It gets to be a straightforward Saw movie with creative traps, lots of Tobin Bell, and an awesome twist ending. That focus made the film so much better.