Synopsis
Working in the shadow of an esteemed police veteran, brash Detective Ezekiel “Zeke” Banks and his rookie partner 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.
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Cast
- Chris RockDetective Zeke Banks
- Samuel L. JacksonMarcus Banks
- Max MinghellaDetective William Schenk
- Marisol NicholsCaptain Angie Garza
- Dan PetronijevicDetective Marv "Boz" Bozwick
- Richard ZeppieriDetective Fitch
- Patrick McManusPeter Dunleavy
- Edie InksetterDetective Kraus
- Thomas MitchellDetective O'Brien
- Nazneen ContractorCoroner Chada
Recommendations
- 80
Total Film
That a formula as well-trodden as Saw’s can still surprise, delight, and make you feel like you need a quick shower after is impressive. - 58
IndieWire
Less of a soft reboot than an emergency root canal for a series at risk of being removed from the release slate forever, this dogeared new chapter “from the Book of Saw” might lack the discipline to escape from the same traps that have always shackled its franchise to the grindhouse floor, but it still manages to squeeze a few drops of fresh milk out of Lionsgate’s oldest surviving cash cow with a back to basics approach and some unexpected political bite. - 58
The A.V. Club
It’s not a waste of a concept, exactly, but it’s not the reinvention that the franchise needs, either. Rock’s involvement brings some new blood to Spiral, but after a promising start it ends up becoming a pretty okay Saw movie with some bigger names than usual. - 53
TheWrap
The screenplay captures the grizzled-cop-movie tone and draws some memorable characters, but the storyline is rote, the mystery is frustratingly predictable, and the imaginative deaths are less imaginative than ever. Spiral sacrifices entertainment value for respectability and in the process doesn’t quite achieve either. - 50
San Francisco Chronicle
Aside from the disgusting parts, Spiral is a fairly decent thriller. - 46
Paste Magazine
Spiral might have rhetorical wrinkles that set it apart from its predecessors, but this franchise is still going around in circles. - 42
The Playlist
There turns out to be no actual book in Spiral: From the Book of Saw, but it does define what makes an intricately bad movie, with flaws that can sometimes be earnest, unintentionally hilarious, or disappointing. - 40
The Hollywood Reporter
Spiral delivers when it comes to gore, if that’s your thing, and appropriately dour aesthetics — but not much else. That’s a shame, because the story’s themes, from the unreformable nature of the police department to the cost of integrity in a space that values power above all else, could not be more relevant.
