In a major surprise, this week’s “Saw X” is pulling in very good reviews and has become the first film in the franchise to snag a positive Tomato-meter rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
With 49 reviews counted, the film has reached 84% (6.7/10) on the aggregate site, a score far higher than any of the previous films with the next nearest being the original “Saw” at 50% (5.6/10).
The same is true over at Metacritic where it landed a 58/100, which is 10 points higher than previous franchise champ “Saw III” at 48/100.
Praise is high for the film ditching the convoluted mythology of the various sequels and sticking to a pared back and fully linear narrative with an actual story, proper character study and solid twists.
The film is releasing this weekend opposite the animated “PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie” and the sci-fi film “The Creator” with all three films set to duke it out for first place. Estimates have all three earning at least $15 million each but it’s not clear who will end up on top.
All three are relatively cost-effective too with budgets of $13 million for “Saw X,” $30 million for the “Paw Patrol” film, and $80 million for “The Creator”.
