“Spiral: From the Book of Saw” takes a fresh stab at a tired franchise.

Want to play a game…again?

You would think after a decade, the highly popular Saw franchise would have run out of games and traps. However, thanks to Chris Rock (yes. THAT Chris Rock), we now have a new chapter of grisly games in Spiral: From the Book of Saw.

The film follows Detective Zeke Banks (Chris Rock) and his rookie partner, who are investigating a series of gruesome murders that are eerily reminiscent of the Jigsaw murders. As the two dig more into the mystery, they find themselves at the center of the game.

Not going to lie and this may shock some of you — but I am actually a huge fan of the first film and definitely watched every single installment (in theaters for that matter).

However, the downfall of the franchise is because each installment became less about the story and more about the spectacle — trying to make the traps more intricate and cringeworthy.

Needless to say, I was very intrigued to see how Chris Rock planned to bring the horror of Jigsaw back to life…and with Samuel L. Jackson.

Spiral: From the Book of Saw is more of an elongated and gritty episode of Criminal Minds with bits of torture porn sprinkled throughout. In other words, the film felt more like an intense cop drama with political undertones rather than one large bloody gimmick, which I enjoyed (although I’m sure die hard fans may be disappointed in). The storytelling, although far from perfect, felt like it was going back to its roots of the original Saw.

I will say, that this definitely felt like the cleanest and classiest of the Saw franchise. Perhaps it was the fact that more colors were introduced into the films bleak palate or that we had more notable actors casted.

Samuel L. Jackson is himself, although I will say, I could use more him. And Chris Rock is peak Chris Rock, adding in moments of laughter and pop culture references that have never graced the Saw franchise before. He’s super cheesy but hey, he’s having the time of his freaking life.

May we all enjoy what we do as much as Chris Rock is carving his spot in the Saw franchise.

Final Thoughts: It’s far from perfect, but Spiral: From the Book of Saw brings life into a tired franchise. This is one game worth playing.