Working in the shadow of his father, an esteemed police veteran (Samuel L. Jackson), brash Detective Ezekiel “Zeke” Banks (Chris Rock) and his rookie partner (Max Minghella) take charge of a grisly investigation into murders that are eerily reminiscent of the city’s gruesome past. Unwittingly entrapped in a deepening mystery, Zeke finds himself at the center of the killer’s morbid game.
After the “Saw” franchise ended in 2010 with “Saw 3D,” fans were left wondering if Lionsgate would ever return to the horror series. When it was announced that a new movie, simply titled “Jigsaw,” would be released in 2017, fans cheered for joy but they were short-lived as they were left unimpressed by a movie that was deemed unsatisfactory, at least compared to the films that came before it. With “Spiral,” the movie returns to the city where it all began, where the Jigsaw Killer has left behind a blood-soaked legacy that will never be unforgotten. Darren Lynn Bousman, the director of “Saw II, III, and IV,” returns to start a new chapter in the series, and thankfully, brings back the atmosphere of terror and dread that accompanied its predecessors.
Chris Rock plays Zeke Banks, a police detective who works in a precinct where he is disliked by his fellow officers. We learn that Zeke, many years ago, ratted out a crooked cop who killed an innocent man in cold blood, and as a result, he has been shunned by everyone he works with, making it almost impossible to depend on backup whenever he needs it. When he is assigned a new rookie partner, William Schenk (Max Minghella), he is initially hesitant, but gradually, they begin to form a bond and trust in each other.
After a mangled body is discovered on one of the city’s underground subway lines, it comes to light that the remains are one of Zeke’s fellow officers. Shortly thereafter, another officer goes missing and when they find the body, it is eerily reminiscent of the gruesome deaths that plagued the city’s past, specifically, the Jigsaw Killer. When Zeke starts receiving packages from the killer in the mail, containing clues to the next murder, he reaches out to his father, Marcus (Samuel L. Jackson), who used to be the police chief when the original murders transpired. Zeke begins to piece the puzzle together and realizes that each officer who was murdered, was dishonest and unprincipled and guilty of some form of corruption. When his partner and father go missing, Zeke takes it upon himself to track them down and finally comes face to face with the new killer.
“Spiral” reintroduces the gruesome and horrendous traps that made the previous movies in the series so successful. Granted, many fans go to see these types of films for the blood and guts but here, director Darren Lynn Bousman, and writers Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger, present a believable narrative about crooked cops that echoes much of what is going on in society today. You instantly empathize with Zeke, realizing he is the only honest police officer in his precinct and while you are led to believe that because of his morals, he is exempt from being murdered, that is shortlived when he wakes up in an old abandoned building, handcuffed to a radiator pipe, with an old saw for company.
The film twists and turns, leading you to believe that the killer is one particular person, then it switches gears and infers that it is actually someone else, and this becomes the method of misdirection for the remainder of the movie. Chris Rock and Samuel L. Jackson have a natural chemistry together as father and son and the rest of the cast are commendable in their respective roles. Naturally, the film ends with a surprise finale and leaves it wide open for a sequel, and depending on how well “Spiral” does at the box office, that might be right around the corner. I recently had the opportunity to interview director Darren Lynn Bousman and co-writer Josh Stolberg, to watch that interview please click HERE.
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