In theaters

SAW III, directed by Darren Lynn Bousman, written by Leigh Whannel, 108 minutes, rated R.

Bottom-of-the-barrel filmmaking is alive and slumming in “Saw III,” the latest in the franchise from director Darren Lynn Bousman and screenwriter Leigh Whannel, which chooses gore for the sake of gore – and cuts its own throat.

The film comes from the appropriately named Twisted Pictures, and it’s one of the more depressing buckets of swill to pour out of Hollywood in a while.

This time out, the serial killer Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) is in the final throes of a brain tumor, which has left him bed-ridden but which remarkably doesn’t prevent him from playing his “games” with folks who don’t value their lives, which the dying Jigsaw finds offensive.

Indeed, in an effort to startle his victims back to caring about the gift of life – even for a moment – he tortures them into submission by hooking them up to any number of deadly mechanical devices, almost all of which lead to their gruesome deaths since the devices are nearly impossible to escape. Does it make sense that Jigsaw’s methods ironically miss the value of the human life he allegedly champions? Of course not, and while I get it that we’re dealing with a madman here, logic still has never been this series’ strong point. It is, in fact, one of the many key elements the film is missing.

Assisting Jigsaw in his questionable life-affirming practices is cruel Amanda (Shawnee Smith), who in this movie helps Jigsaw put a grieving father (Angus Macfadyen) through the wringer as he is forced to forgive all of those who wronged his dead son, as well as a surgeon (Bahar Soomekh) who is forced to wear a collar that will blow her head off if she doesn’t keep Jigsaw alive.

For the sake of argument, let’s assume that it’s easier to develop a movie built on stunts than it is to develop a movie built on substance. Generating real horror and real chills from a well-crafted story, one could argue, is more difficult to pull off than, say, stringing up an endless array of rotting hogs and dropping them into a giant meat grinder, under which is a shackled man whose fate it is to drown on their innards, as is the case here. Such a situation isn’t scary, it’s just an easy, cheap gross-out – and really, by the 20th slaughtered hog, it becomes mind-numbingly repetitious, just like the rest of the movie.

In the end, what the “Saw” series continues to underscore is how creatively bankrupt the horror genre has become. Where is the attention to storytelling and to characters? Is it just torture that entertains us now, the allure of what some are calling the rise of gorenography? Since the film opened at an impressive $33 million, the answer to that question isn’t just written on the wall – it’s scrawled on it in blood and entrails.

For those who enjoy films designed purely for degradation, mutilation and amputation, ignore this review and enjoy the movie. You’ll love it, particularly if you can overlook the poor lighting, the sloppy editing and the propensity for the actors to overact. For those who appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into making great horror movies, where characters and storylines are allowed to connect with real horror, it’s likely best to cut your losses and stay well away from the rotten “Saw III.”

Grade: F

On DVD

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE III, directed by J.J. Abrams, written by Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Abrams, 126 minutes, rated PG-13.

J.J. Abrams’ “Mission: Impossible III,” from a script he co-wrote with Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, demands that we lose ourselves in a peculiar world peppered with bouts of silly intrigue, shapeless, faceless people who amount to nothing, and a denouement that really is a denoue-zip. Since we can’t do so – and since much of the movie is gobbledygook, anyway – the result is a shade underwhelming.

Predictably, the plot is ridiculous, though not as absurd as in the first film, which was so dense, it turned in on itself until it became nothing.

This time out, Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt is an emotional softy, so much so that his left eye seems forever on the brink of tears, while his right eye remains curiously dry, as if it were made of glass. Nice trick, particularly when Cruise’s left eye cries him a river, as it is wont to do when an irritating little bomb, for instance, is shoved up his nose, and especially since the plot revolves around the abduction of Ethan’s new bride, Julia (Michelle Monaghan).

It’s the evil Owen Davian (Philip Seymour Hoffman, one of the few reasons to see the film) who is behind those deeds, but they are payback because Ethan stole from Owen a nuclear device called the “rabbit’s foot,” which is never fully explained, and which hardly brings the movie the good luck it needs.

Hustling along the periphery are Billy Crudup, Laurence Fishburne, Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Ving Rhames and Keri Russell, each wasted in a movie more concerned with whatever slim intensity Cruise can manufacture onscreen. Some of the movie’s action scenes are well conceived, but not one of them is fresh. Shouldn’t a $150 million budget buy more than just another bridge being blown apart? Perhaps something more interesting than Cruise leaping between Shanghai skyscrapers?

Maybe next time – though likely not with Paramount.

Grade: C-

Visit www.weekinrewind.com, the archive of Bangor Daily News film critic Christopher Smith’s reviews, which appear Mondays in Discovering, Fridays in Happening, and Weekends in Television. He may be reached at Christopher@weekinrewind.com.

Renting a video or a DVD? BDN film critic Christopher Smith can help. Below are his grades of recent releases in video stores. Those in bold print are new to video stores this week.

Akeelah and the Bee-B+

American Dreamz-D-

ATL-B-

Basic Instinct 2-D+

The Benchwarmers-D

Big Momma’s House 2-D

Breakfast on Pluto-B

The Break-Up-B

Brokeback Mountain-A-

Broken Trail-B

Capote-A

Cars-C

Cheaper by the Dozen 2-C-

Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe-A

Creature Comforts: Complete Second Season-B+

The Constant Gardener-A-

Curious George-B

Dark Shadows: Collection 26-B

Date Movie-D-

Derailed-C+

Double Indemnity-A

Everyday Food, Vol. 1: Fast, Family-Friendly Ideas-B-

Failure to Launch-C-

The Family Stone-D

The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift-B

Forever Knight: The Trilogy, Part Three-B+

Freedomland-C-

Friends with Money-B

Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties-C+

The Haunted Mansion: Blu-ray-D

The Hills Have Eyes-D

A History of Violence-A

How Art Made the World- A

Howl’s Moving Castle-A-

Inside Man-B+

Junebug-A

Kinky Boots-B+

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang-B+

Last Holiday-B

Legends of Jazz with Ramsey Lewis: Blu-ray-A

The Libertine-D

Lucky Number Slevin-B

The Matador-B+

Match Point-A

Mission Impossible III-C-

Monster House-B+

Munich-A-

Nacho Libre-C

North Country-C

The Omen-B-

Only Fools and Horses: Complete Series 7-B+

Out of Sight: HD DVD-A-

Over the Hedge-B

Paradise Now-A-

Poseidon-B

A Prairie Home Companion-C

Red Eye-B+

Rumor Has It…-C-

Saving Shiloh-B

Scary Movie 4-D+

The Shaggy Dog-C-

Shakespeare Behind Bars-A-

16 Blocks-B

The Squid and the Whale-B+

Slither-B

Take the Lead-C-

Transamerica-B

21 Grams: Collector’s Edition-A

United 93-A

X-Men: The Last Stand-B-