Jigsaw (Saw character)

For other people named John Cramer, see John Cramer (disambiguation).

This article is about a character from the Saw movies. For other uses, see Jigsaw (Saw character) (disambiguation).

Saw character
Jigsaw
Birth name:	Jonathan Kramer
Nickname(s):	The Jigsaw Killer, Jigsaw
Gender:	Male
Age:	52 (at death)
Relationships:	Amanda Young (apprentice) Mark Hoffman (accomplice / successor) Jill Tuck (ex-wife) Lawrence Gordon (doctor) Art Blank (lawyer / business partner)
M.O.:	Constructing symbolic death traps Psychological torture Indirect physical torture
Cause of death:	Neck slashed by Jeff Reinhart with a circular saw
First appearance:	Saw
Created by:	James Wan & Leigh Whannell
Portrayed by:	Tobin Bell

The Jigsaw Killer is a fictional character in the Saw franchise. Jigsaw made his debut appearance as the primary antagonist in the first film of the series, Saw, and later Saw II, III, IV and V. He is portrayed by American actor Tobin Bell.

Jigsaw, introduced in the series as Jonathan Kramer, was a patient dying from an inoperable frontal lobe tumor that had developed from colon cancer.

In the series, Jigsaw usually created deadly tests for his subjects, where often a symbolic representation of what could be seen as a flaw in the person's life. He claimed that he was attempting to help his victims to appreciate their lives by jump starting their survival instincts by placing them in life-threatening situations.

In film

Saw

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John Kramer before becoming Jigsaw

The Jigsaw Killer character was introduced in the 2004 film Saw through the character Dr. Gordon's recounting of his first killings. Jigsaw is described as a mysterious person who kidnaps people he sees as wasting their lives and attempts to "save" them by administering various inhumane tests. As opposed to other killers, Jigsaw does not actually intend to kill his subjects. The purpose of his traps is to see if the subject has the will to survive, and thus inflict enough psychological trauma for the subject to appreciate their life and save themselves from their own demons. As his victims increase, the media dubs him The Jigsaw Killer—or simply, Jigsaw—because of the jigsaw puzzle-shaped piece of flesh that he cuts from an unsuccessful subject, a practice explained in Saw II as reflecting the subject "was missing a vital piece of the human puzzle; the survival instinct". Throughout the first film, his identity remains mostly unknown; the unstable ex-cop David Tapp suspects he is in fact Dr. Gordon, one of the film's two protagonists, and near the end of the film Gordon and fellow protagonist Adam Faulkner are led to believe it is the hospital orderly Zep Hindle. Only at the end of the film is it revealed that the Jigsaw Killer was in fact a terminal cancer patient of Gordon's, John, who spent the entire movie posing as a corpse to watch the test he created for Adam and Dr. Gordon.

Saw II

Much of the character's backstory was revealed in Saw II, revealing that he had become sick and had gone in for a check-up, where he learned from Dr. Lawrence Gordon that he was dying of colon cancer, with an inoperable brain tumor. From there, he stated that he began to see how many people took their lives for granted. He ended up driving himself off of a cliff, but survived the suicide attempt, and began his work to save people from themselves. Though he never claimed nor encouraged the name, John's work eventually earned him the nickname The Jigsaw Killer, in spite of the fact that the circumstances and intentions he had while conducting his work, he did not label himself a "killer" or "murderer". This is because rather than killing his victims outright, he traps them in situations, which he calls "tests" or "games", in order to test their instinctual will to live via physical or psychological torture.

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Jigsaw on his deathbed

In Saw II, Jigsaw leaves a hint in one of his traps that leads police to apprehend him. There, he puts police Detective Eric Matthews through a test by showing him Eric's son Daniel trapped in a house filled with nerve gas, along with people whom, though far from innocent, Matthews had framed for crimes they did not commit. Jigsaw offers to let the younger Matthews survive if the Detective sits and talks to him, which ends with Eric brutally beating Jigsaw and forcing him to lead him to the house. Upon their arrival, Jigsaw is rescued by Amanda Young, one of his victims who, having survived her trap and seeing her captor as a savior, has become his apprentice.

Saw III

By Saw III, a dying Jigsaw is bedridden and extremely concerned over Amanda's failure to allow her subjects a fair chance to survive her tests. In his desperation, Jigsaw administers a final test to Amanda, in order to see if she was truly capable of successfully carrying on his work. Being kept alive by Dr. Lynn Denlon, a test subject who is forced to perform brain surgery on Jigsaw at the risk of dying by her own trap, Jigsaw attempts to keep Amanda from failing her test. However, after she breaks down, Amanda shoots Lynn. Witnessing this, Jeff Reinhart, the vengeful husband of Lynn who is also being tested, kills Amanda with a gunshot to her neck. After explaining the rules of a final game to Jeff, Jigsaw is killed when Jeff slices his throat with a power-saw. Whilst dying from this wound Jigsaw pulls out a tape player and plays Jeff a tape explaining that he is responsible for the abduction of Corbett, Jeff's daughter, and that if Jeff wants her back he'll have to participate in another game.

Saw IV

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Jigsaw's corpse is Autopsied.

While Jigsaw appears as a corpse in present-time at the beginning and end of Saw IV, a tape found in his stomach during his autopsy assures Lieutenant Mark Hoffman that his games have just begun. During the autopsy, it was revealed that John was 52 at the time of his death.

Saw IV also explored Jigsaw's history, more so than previously done in Saw II, rendering some of the content in Saw: Rebirth non-canon, instead showing a new back story. From the story given in Saw IV, John was a successful civil engineer who got into property development, and a devoted husband to his wife Jill; she ran a recovery clinic for drug users, to which he gave his belief, "Cherish Your Life." However, after a robbery and the reckless actions of a clinic patient named Cecil resulted in the loss of John's unborn child, he became detached and angry, which ultimately resulted in the divorce of John and Jill. After being diagnosed with cancer, as first seen in Saw II, and trying to kill himself, John began his work as Jigsaw, hunting down Cecil as his first test subject.

Saw V

Jigsaw reappears in Saw V, by appearing in flashbacks meeting with Hoffman, attacking and kidnapping Paul Leahy, then setting up, and later watching his razor wire trap from Saw, as well as setting up the house of Saw II. He appears on his deathbed talking to Hoffman about setting up a test, which leads Hoffman to exit the room, as Amanda enters, with Lynn Denlon, which occurs near the beginning of Saw III. Jigsaw also appears in a video will to his ex-wife Jill, leaving her a mysterious box. His deceased body is seen several short times, during the start of the movie, which was also the end of Saw IV, an opening scene in which Peter Strahm receives his first cassette tape, and a flashback which occurs to Strahm later in the film.

Saw VI

It has been confirmed that Tobin Bell has officially signed on for Saw VI, reprising his role as Jigsaw.

In other media

Saw: Rebirth

The character of John Kramer is also featured in the comic book, Saw: Rebirth, which is set prior to the events of the first movie. It filled in some of John's history, showing him as a toy designer at Standard Engineering Ltd. who was too lazy to do much with his life, ultimately ending his relationship with Jill. Saw: Rebirth also reveals John's discovery that he had terminal cancer and outlined how his subsequent failed suicide attempt impacted his train of thought. His relationships with Lawrence, Zep, Paul, Amanda, and Mark were explored, along with his transformation into Jigsaw. Rebirth's continuity was ultimately contradicted by the backstory presented in Saw IV.

Saw: The Videogame

Horror news site Bloody-Disgusting has reported that Jigsaw's character will feature in Saw: The Videogame, which is currently in production. Jonathan Kramer will be be the voice of jigsaw the character he plays so well in the the saw movies find out more information here

Characterization

The producers of the Saw films have sought to differentiate the Jigsaw Killer from other horror-film killers. Darren Lynn Bousman, the director of Saw II, III and IV, has stated on the character's role "He's not Jason or Freddy. He's not even Hannibal Lecter. He's a person with extreme beliefs and he really thinks he's making a difference. He's a vigilante if anything. He thinks he's making a difference." Tobin Bell, the actor who plays Jigsaw, describes his character's role as being more of a scientist or engineer and "he thinks very specifically and very pragmatically".

Bousman mentioned that Saw III was intended to contain a scene in which Jigsaw showed remorse for his actions after seeing the results.

For the first time, we actually see him break down and cry. Imagine your entire life's work. You're on your deathbed. You know there's nothing else you can do and here's how you'll be remembered: as a killer, as a murderer. Not as someone who helped people. Not as someone who changed lives. Someone who took away lives. The one thing he didn't want to be and, as he's on his deathbed, he's realizing this.

As a result of his cancer and a failed suicide attempt, John decided to dedicate the rest of his life to teaching people to appreciate their own lives. The producers of Saw III and director Darren Lynn Bousman see Jigsaw, not as a serial killer, but a "scientist" who is determined to initiate the survival instinct in his "subjects", believing that humanity no longer uses its instinct of survival.

While the character's discovery that he has cancer is acknowledged to be the "final straw" that drove him to his actions, Bell has stated in an interview that "His terminal cancer is one of the elements of his life but he's as angry over the fact the world is going to hell in handbasket because it's no longer the survival of the fittest; it's the survival of the mediocre. That drives him as much as anything else. He doesn't just talk about his frustrations, he does something about them, and he puts himself on the line. His cancer was about one element in about 130 elements that caused him to create the world that he's created."

Jigsaw is depicted in the Saw films as being extremely intelligent in the areas relevant to his actions. In Saw: Rebirth he is depicted doing extensive study in multiple fields to gain knowledge for designing his tests, and recurring director Bousman himself has described Jigsaw as being "extremely educated" in an interview.

Symbolic representations

Traps

In the series, Jigsaw usually builds deadly traps for his subjects, which are often a symbolic representation of what Jigsaw perceives as a flaw in the person's life. Jigsaw calls these tests "games", and tells the person the "rules" of the game usually by audio or video tape. The rules are tasks that the person must perform in order to pass the test and survive; however, the tasks often involve extreme self-mutilation (although there have been occasions where it is possible for the subject not to harm themselves if they are clever enough, such as the Hand Trap). On occasion, Jigsaw has used psychological torture for the subject's test.

Many of the games involve clocks, counting down timers or other measured time constraints provided to the victims. Jigsaw elaborated in Saw II his appreciation of "time", outlining the importance of savoring every moment. He also stated his belief that telling someone the time in which they may die would awaken an alertness for every moment of existence.

Jake Huntley wrote of the complexity of Jigsaw's character in the Irish Journal of Gothic and Horror Studies. Huntley described the intention behind Jigsaw's actions, and evaluated the extent to which they can be analyzed to fit into the philosophies associated with Deleuze, Darwin and Nietzsche:

The subject of one of Jigsaw's games is therefore always presented with an opportunity, the aim of which is to reinvigorate the potential of the subject, jump-start the survival instinct and instil a celebration or "savouring" of life. In Deleuzian terms, it is the potential of life that is at stake... It is this that gives Jigsaw's games their Deleuzian tone, the urgent revitalisation of life occasioning new experiences to be learnt and assimilated: such as the perverse, singular and aberrant situation of waking to find a man-trap secured around your neck. There is then the instruction to live or die, to make your choice, to survive the encounter with affect, or the affection-image... There is no thrill, sadistic or otherwise, in setting these games; they are throws of the die by the subjects, aleatoric opportunities... As Jigsaw makes clear to Detective Matthews during their conversation in Saw II, where Jigsaw's motivation and philosophy are most comprehensively explored, "I've never murdered anyone in my life. The decisions are up to them." Whilst it probably wouldn't stand up in court, he is at least correct in his usual, carefully literal sense. The decisions, the choices, the selection of a potential, are in the hands of the subjects of his games and he only intervenes in order to keep the game within its rules so a decision can be reached. The subjects are faced with a shocking choice that forces them to acknowledge what Deleuze identifies as the virtual – that is, the unacknowledged aspects of our experience with reality. This, in effect, is the particular game that Jigsaw himself plays – one where the organism might be failing but the flow of desire succeeds and endures. Jigsaw might resort to discussing Darwin's "little trip to the Galapagos Islands" to provide a theoretical underpinning for his project and echo Nietzsche in talking of the will to survive, but this merely misdirects investigators and witnesses in the same way that the gruesome traps and freely-flowing gore earn him his unsettling serial-killer soubriquet. Jigsaw's games are designed to crack open the world of their respective players: the challenges are nearly always relevant to the subject's lifestyle in a symbolic or literal way, bringing them to (painful) self-awareness, prompting a reappraisal of their squandered potential.

Jigsaw intends through these traps to force his victims to prove to him that they are "worthy" and "deserving" to continue living, and also for them to learn to abandon what he perceives to be their vices. Jigsaw often expressed a desire for his victims to succeed, but stressed that their fate was always in their own hands. The video- and audio-tape instructions for his games often echo this idea: "Live or die. Make your choice."

Billy the puppet

Main article: Billy (Saw)

Billy the puppet is an icon of the Jigsaw character. Jigsaw often used it for the purposes of delivering messages to his victims. This was often done via a television screen, but at times it has also been physically present with Jigsaw's victims during their tests. Jigsaw provided the voice for Billy when it delivered its messages. It is shown in Saw IV that the original puppet was created by Jigsaw as an intended toy for his unborn child. Jigsaw is shown constructing the more menacing Billy puppet in Saw III for the purpose of its inclusion in his psychotic 'games'.

Pig mask

The pig mask is a thematic prop worn by Jigsaw and his accomplices throughout the Saw film series to conceal their identities while abducting their "test subjects". As the series continues, the purpose of the pig mask is explored in detail; explained to be a tribute to the "Year of the Pig", the year in which Jigsaw started his work.

The origin of the pig mask was shown in Saw IV, revealing the first known pig masks to have been latex strap-on masks used at a Year of the Pig Chinese New Year festival. Jigsaw had snatched them and donned one, while using the other one to hold his chloroform-soaked rag. The second mask was then used to knock out John's first test subject, Cecil, by placing the mask over his head with the chloroform rag still inside.

When working on the original Saw film, writer Leigh Whannel and director James Wan wanted their antagonist Jigsaw to have some sort of mask. After some discussion, the idea of Jigsaw wearing a rotting pig's head was chosen to symbolize his pessimistic view of the world and the disease that he was "rotting" from.

Nevertheless, the mask given to them from production (a rubber halloween mask) was considered by them to be less than satisfactory. A number of things were added to make it look more gruesome, including long black hair and pus running from its eyes and nostrils. Leigh Whannell has still admitted to being disappointed with its final appearance compared to his intended one, but has admitted that the mask has since become one of the "staples" of the Saw franchise.

Along with Billy and perhaps Jigsaw himself, the mask has since become one of the more iconic symbols of the franchise. It has appeared on both the posters for the first film and the fourth. The mask has also been featured on many forms of merchandise. Officially licensed pig-mask replicas have been sold for Halloween. In addition, the mask has been featured on numerous Jigsaw action figures. NECA has released two Jigsaw figurines with the pig mask; the original was Jigsaw wearing the mask in his black cloak, and a Saw III variant of Jigsaw wearing it in his red cloak. In addition, the Be@rBrick line has released a "bear" version of Jigsaw wearing the pig mask. Sideshow Collectibles has also released a figurine of Jigsaw wearing his infamous pig mask in the "Real Action Hero" line.

On the commentary track of Saw IV, several discussions occur about Jigsaw's decision to use references to pigs in the series. In the series, the producers explained that Jigsaw was a spiritual person. However, it has never been revealed what religion he follows. In Saw IV, Jigsaw's ex-wife Jill explains Jigsaw's organized and planned lifestyle, stating that she had conceived their miscarried son Gideon, with Jigsaw planning for him to be born in the year of the Pig. On the commentary track, the producers explain that in the Chinese Zodiac, the pig stands for fertility and re-birth. Jigsaw is seen several times throughout the series with figurines of clay soldiers and buddhas, further symbolizing his reference to various Asian cultures.

Jigsaw puzzle pieces

Cut-outs were made, in the shape of jigsaw puzzle pieces, from the flesh of Jigsaw's deceased victims who failed to pass their test. John Kramer received the nickname "Jigsaw" from the police and the press stemming from his tendency to perform such a ritual; however, he never encouraged that name or used it to refer to himself.

Huntley argued that the jigsaw pieces that John cut out of the flesh of his failed test subjects was not intended as a mere stylized signature, but rather that it had a much deeper philosophical reflection. He stated that:

Far from being a stamp of final approval, a post-(mortem)-script to the game, the jigsaw piece represents the admission of the subject's missing survival instinct, the corporeal body's non-relational or "snagged" desire. Those marked with jigsaw pieces are the ones that got away, left inert, reduced to the zero intensity of death. It would seem strange that Jigsaw – surely the last figure ever to be deemed sentimental – should choose to extract this symbolic jigsaw piece from these subjects, except that Jigsaw is linguistically consistent in explaining how he "takes" or "cuts" the piece of skin. The jigsaw shape marking those who "fail" is the adding of a subtraction – in effect, the removal of their inability, their unfulfilled potential or their lack – the excision that leaves the whole of the body that is not the closed, inert corporeal body but is, instead, the "body-without-organs", that is, the nexus point where energy pools amid the flow and fold of forces and durations, existence beyond the living organism.

A hand-drawn jigsaw puzzle piece was also drawn on the back of a photograph in Saw as part of a clue for one of his games.

Apprentices

Throughout the Saw series, Jigsaw developed a tendency to recruit "apprentices" to carry on his perceived mission. Amanda Young and Lieutenant Mark Hoffman are currently the only two known apprentices Jigsaw has had.

Huntley analyzed Jigsaw's intentions in taking in protégés as stemming from the terminally ill character's desire to overcome death itself, and argues that this is further evidence of his thought-process being characterized by Deleuzian philosophy. Huntley argued:

Jigsaw decides that the answer is to achieve immortality through a legacy, having a successor to continue with his work. The impulse is Deleuzian. Jigsaw remains calm, neutral and impassive throughout the Saw films (not least because of his terminal condition) yet his only express wish, concern or desire, is that his legacy is maintained – the work of testing the fabric of humanity should go on. "Jigsaw" – as the intensive site of being, a locus of desire, the body-without-organs – can survive the death of the organism John Kramer... What seems to be consistent thematically through the Saw films is that "Jigsaw" is a part for various players, an identity composed of pieces...

The term "apprentice" was used in the official plot synopses for Saw III and Saw IV.

Theatrical robe

Jigsaw is usually seen wearing a black theatrical robe with a large hood and red lining when running traps or abducting victims. On the commentary track for the first Saw film, it was explained that the producers originally wanted Jigsaw to have the red robe with black interior. Thinking that the red robe was too vibrant for the film, they reversed the robe to make it black with red interior. Jigsaw's apprentice, Amanda, appeared in Saw III wearing a robe like this, in an attempt to symbolically emulate her mentor.

Tobin Bell

Speaking about his character, actor Tobin Bell says, "My wife mentioned to me that she read an interview with Jeffrey Dahmer's mother about his childhood. And she said he was a perfectly normal child. He had friends like everyone else, he participated in the same kind of activities. In terms of your question about icons, if you begin to think of people like that, it's a deadly thing to do. You have to think of someone like Jigsaw from a very specific point of view. He doesn't view himself as some kind of diabolical psychotic. You know there's a little bit of evil in everyone. It just gets carried further. Most of us have some sort of moral fiber that restricts that. Some framework. And then others because of their lives and what happens to them, the thing develops in some other way. You know, I've played a lot of different kind of guys. Jigsaw's a fascinating person. And it's up to the filmmakers to do what ever they want to do with where he's coming from and to shape it and make it something meaningful and fits into the picture."

Reaction

As early as October 2005, an interviewer for IGN was willing to describe the Jigsaw Killer as "the next Freddy" in terms of iconic status as a modern horror film character, a comment that deeply touched Leigh Whannell, the screenwriter of Saw. A review of Saw II in the San Francisco Chronicle praised Tobin Bell and Jigsaw as being "more terrifying than the movie villains in Hollywood's last five horror films put together – even though he's in a wheelchair and hooked up to multiple IVs."

Despite the mystery of the character's identity created by the filmmakers in Saw, Bell's depiction of Jigsaw was used in promotional posters for Saw III and Saw IV. Action figures of Jigsaw have also been produced by the National Entertainment Collectibles Association.

External links

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