SAW X 4K UltraHD

In "SAW X," John Kramer (Tobin Bell) is back. The story explores the untold chapter of Jigsaw's most personal game. Set between the events of SAW I and II, this story finds a sick and desperate John traveling to Mexico for a riky and experimental medical procedure in hopes of obtaining a miracle cure for his cancer –– only to discover the entire operation is a scam to defraud the most vulnerable. Armed with newfound purpose, John returns to his work, turning the tables on the con artists in his signature visceral way through a series of ingenious and terrifying traps. (Gary Reber)

Special features include commentary with Director-Editor Kevin Greutert, Cinematographer Nick Matthews and Production Designer Anthony Stablley; seven featurettes: "I Want To Play A Game: Bleeding New Life Into The Saga" (HD 08:37), "This Time it's Personal: Characters And Casting" (HD 25:26), "Another Time, Another Place: Locations And Cinematography" (HD 10:15), "There Will Be Blood: Production Design And Make-Up" (HD 21:00), "Leave Noting To Chance: Post-Production" (HD 19:39), "Live Or Die: Release And Legacy" (HD 10:48), "Drawing Inspiration: Illustrated Scene Breakdowns With Director-Editor Kevin Greutert" (HD 33:55) and "Make-Up Department Trap Tests" (HD 17:28); 13 deleted scenes (HD 37:10), theatrical trailer and a digital copy.

The 1.85:1 2160p HEVC/H.265 4K Ultra HD HDR10 picture, reviewed on a VIZIO Quantum X P85QX-JI UHD/HDR display, was photographed digitally using the Sony CineAlta Venice camera system and sourced from a 4K Digital Intermediate. Picture quality is good. The color palette exhibits a wide natural spectrum of hues that are vividly rich and warm. Colors are saturated throughout, especially red visual effects. Flesh tones are natural. Production design provides effective lighting effects and bright highlights. HDR contrast is also good with highlights contrasted with deep, solid blacks and shadow delineation. Sharpness and clarity are excellent. Resolution also is superb with fine detail exhibited throughout, especially during close-ups of facial features, skin pores, hair, beard stubble, clothing and object texts. This is a terrifying edition in the "SAW" series. (Gary Reber)

The Dolby Atmos/Dolby TrueHD 7.1-channel soundtrack is very dynamic and recorded with excellent fidelity. Deep, powerful bass extends to sub-25 Hz frequencies but never sounds artificial, even the .1 LFE enhancement. Atmospherics are realistic sounding and positioned effectively throughout the soundfield. Sound effects are powerfully dynamic and aggressive as an immersive element. The orchestra score is similar to the previous composition and delivers an eerie, haunting emotional feel that excites the emotional uncertainty of the terror that is to come. The music spans wide and deep across the soundstage and extends aggressively to the surrounds. Dialogue is consistently intelligible and generally well integrated spatially.

The Immersive Sound element consists of the orchestral music extension, various atmospherics, some dramatic dialogue extension, and various sound effects. The sound design could have been much more powerful and effective as a height layer.

Still, this is a most effectively chilling and horrific holosonic® spherical surround experience. (Gary Reber)