After six films and all the blood and gore imaginable, the Saw franchise has come to a close. But that’s not the only reason the latest installment of Saw is special; it’s also the only of the seven movies to be in 3-D. With all the hype put in, Saw 3D did not disappoint, with the goriest and most explosive movie in the series.

Saw VI ended with Detective Hoffman (Costas Mandylor)remarkably escaping a  modified reverse bear trap Jigsaw’s ex wife Jill Tuck (Betsy Russell)put on his head, despite the fact that his hands were tied down and she didn’t leave the key. Hoffman was able to escape by breaking his left hand and slipping out of the chair, and then lodging the trap between the bars on the door. He then pulled his head out of the trap, ripping his cheek open in the process.

Saw 3D picks up there with Jill Tuck watching Hoffman break out of the trap, and then escaping before Hoffman can find her. She goes to Internal Affairs Detective Matt Gibson (Chad Donella) and gives him information on Hoffman’s involvement with Jigsaw in exchange for immunity. They hold her in the police station for protection and start hunting Hoffman.

Meanwhile the main game for the movie involves a man named Bobby Dagen (Sean Patrick Flanery) who rose to fame as a self help guru by writing a book about his experience surviving a Jigsaw trap. He was a fraud however, and had never been in a trap. He got the idea after seeing a survivor on the news and his friend mentioned that someone could get rich selling their story. The idea worked to get him rich, but was a dumb idea in the long run as he found himself in one of Jigsaw’s games. The rest of the movie plays out with Hoffman hunting down Jill Tuck while the police hunt Hoffman and Dagen tries to save his wife and friends. It sets up for an exciting finish, with a traditional Saw twist that successfully ties the final film back to the original. It’s one of the better endings of any movie in the series and will leave the audience blown away the first time.

The obvious appeal for the Saw movies is the traps and Saw 3D had some of the best. There were eleven traps in the movie, which is the most ever in any single Saw movie. The traps were also extremely creative, with the first trap ever to take place outside opening the film. It was an interesting trap because it took place in a window display in a shopping center with about 400 people walking around. They start to crowd around the window when the people wake up and start to freak out. Nobody’s really sure what’s going on until the classic jigsaw doll Billy comes from behind something in the window and the game is described to everyone. The trap is hooked up so that everything that is said is played through a loud speaker somewhere outside so all the people crowded around the glass were able to hear what exactly is going on. Obviously panic ensued but nothing could be done as the game played out before everyone’s eyes. It was interesting because usually games take place in deserted places where nobody could find them, but this trap was out in the open for everyone to witness.

Another interesting trap in the movie took place in this junkyard garage. It focused on a man named Evan (Chester Bennington, lead singer from Linkin Park) who had his back stuck onto the driver’s seat of a car. His two friends and girlfriend were also in the trap and their survival depended on whether the man could detach himself from the seat, ripping his skin off in the process, and reach a lever on the hood of the car. If he couldn’t reach the lever the jacks holding the car up would drop setting off a chain reaction that would result in the brutal death of all four of them.

Overall Saw 3D is an excellent movie for anyone that follows the series. It’s a solid ending to the series, although not perfect. There is one big question that is created at the end of the movie, but unfortunately it’s never answered. Another issue with the movie is the fact that Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) doesn’t have a big part. He’s been dead since Saw III but has had major roles in the rest of the films through flashbacks and tapes. He was in a few flashbacks, specifically an enjoyable one where he goes to Dagen’s book signing and hints that he knows he’s a fraud, but he didn’t have a major role like before.

Despite the small issues Saw 3D is still one of the best movies in the series. Fans of the series won’t be surprised with what they see, but they will be pleased with the traps and especially the ending. The best part about the Saw movies is the loyal following it has, as without knowing the other movies Saw 3D would make no sense. That’s the way it is with all series, but it’s especially true with Saw as there are a lot of details throughout the movie that would not make any sense to non fans of the series. For example, Dagen holds a self help meeting for any jigsaw trap survivor early on in the film, and a lot of the characters from the past films that survived returned for the meeting. It was interesting as a fan to see the characters after the trap, but for a non fan they wouldn’t know who these characters are. And obviously with all Saw movies it’s an acquired taste, and despite not being well received with critics has been a hit with fans since the beginning. Although it’s sad that the series has come to a close, Saw 3D successfully closed the door on one of the most famous horror series of the last decade.