Saw III

Saw III is a 2006 horror film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman from a screenplay by Leigh Whannell and a story by Whannell and James Wan. It is the third installment in the Saw film series and a sequel to 2005's Saw II. The film stars Tobin Bell, Shawnee Smith, Angus Macfadyen, Bahar Soomekh, and Dina Meyer. In the film, Jigsaw / John Kramer, who is known for forcing his victims to participate in deadly games in order to test their will to live, puts a man named Jeff through a series of tests of his ability to forgive, after Jeff's son was killed by a drunk driver. Meanwhile, John's apprentice Amanda has kidnapped a doctor named Lynn and tasked her with keeping John, who is bedridden with terminal cancer, alive long enough for Jeff to complete his game. Much like its predecessor, the film was immediately green-lit after the successful opening weekend of the prior film. Filming took place in Toronto from May to June 2006. Whannell aimed to make the story more emotional than previous installments, particularly with the Amanda and Jigsaw storyline. The film is dedicated to producer Gregg Hoffman, who died on December 4, 2005. Saw III was released in the United States on , by Lionsgate Films. It was a financial success, opening to $33.6 million and grossing $80.2 million in the United States and Canada. It is the highest-grossing film of the series in the international market and the highest-grossing film in the series overall. It received mixed to negative reviews from critics, with some criticism directed towards the plot and screenplay. Bell was nominated for "Best Villain" at the 2007 MTV Movie Awards and the film received nominations for a Saturn Award as "Best Horror Film". The film was released to DVD and Blu-ray on where it topped the charts selling 2.5 million units in its first week. A sequel, titled Saw IV, was released in 2007.