5 of the Most Insanely Original Films in Horror History
In horror, the best film genre on this beautifully bold planet of ours, the slew of frighting films we often get varies quite a bit. From the maniacal monster movies of the ’30s, the big bug/creature features of the late ’40 and ’50s, or the welcomed realism of the ’60s and ’70s, horror certainly has a storied past.
While some are simplistic yet highly executed, with John Carpenter’s timeless Halloween standing as the shining example, others are extremely entertaining in their quest for high concept. Some are great, others not so much, with our beloved genre often going through more changes than the tires at Big O.
So sit back, put those hands in a bag of spooky popcorn, and get ready for five of the most original films in the history of horror!
2004’s Saw (#5)
James Wan’s ‘Saw’-Courtesy of Lionsgate
“Do you want to play a game?” – Jigsaw
Beginning our list of the five most original films in horror’s history, 2004’s Saw is cutting its way into our countdown with its intensively keen carnage.
Directed by James Wan, Saw’s narrative conception is a sharp as bloody blade. Wan, later going on to be one of cinema’s best and brilliant filmmakers, co-wrote the script with frequent collaborator Leigh Whannell. What the two Australian-born creatives created, which became horror’s most profitable franchises, has yet to be duplicated.
Spawning six surreal sequels to date, with Saw: Legacy currently on the way in 2017, Saw’s sadistically sick, and highly unusual, illain is a huge part of film’s luster. Nicknamed Jigsaw, whose real name is John Kramer, Billy’s puppeteer, and his motives, make Saw special.
While creating a villain whose motives were rooted in empathy, or whose ideologies were so, Wan and Whannell created one of the most complexly films in our genres history. Jigsaw, do we want to play a game? Yeah, I think we do. Only it better not be a trap!
