Gordon family (Saw)
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The Gordon family was a family that appeared in the first installment of the Saw film series.
The family consisted of Lawrence, his wife Alison, and their daughter Diana. Lawrence and Alison had an unstable relationship, with Lawrence focusing too much time into his work and having an affair on the side with a woman named Carla.
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[edit] Lawrence Gordon
| Saw character | |
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| Lawrence Gordon | |
| Gender: | Male |
| Relationships: | Alison Gordon (wife) Diana Gordon (daughter) Carla (medical student, mistress) Adam (cellmate) |
| Enemies: | Jigsaw (former patient) Detective David Tapp Zep Hindle |
| First appearance: | Saw |
| Portrayed by: | Cary Elwes |
Dr. Lawrence Gordon's first chronological appearance was in Saw: Rebirth, which portrayed him as the cold, uncaring doctor who diagnosed John Kramer with cancer. A hospital orderly named Zep Hindle hinted to John that Lawrence had been cheating on his wife, and his appearance in Saw confirmed the fact that he was having an affair with his medical student, a woman named Carla. This, together with his uncaring attitude at work and his crumbling relationship with his wife and daughter, was the reason he was targeted by John Kramer, now known by the media as the Jigsaw Killer.
While investigating a crime scene involving Jigsaw, Lawrence's penlight was found, tying him to the gruesome murders and making him a suspect. He was brought in for investigation by detectives David Tapp and Steven Sing. Accused of being the Jigsaw Killer, Lawrence managed to prove he wasn't after giving his alibi; at the time of the death, Lawrence had been with Carla. Lawrence was released from custody after watching the detectives interrogate Amanda Young, a survivor of one of Jigsaw's games. However, Lawrence was again suspected of being Jigsaw by Tapp, who had been discharged from the force following Detective Sing's death. Believing he had let the killer go, he watched Lawrence carefully, hiring Adam Faulkner to follow and take pictures of him.
After leaving his home, supposedly to go to work, Lawrence arrived at a motel where he had been called to meet Carla. Annoyed with her for paging him at home, he decided their affair was getting too risky, and broke it off. However, before he left the room, someone called, revealing that someone knew about the secret affair. At the time, Lawrence had no idea that he was being followed and photographed. While leaving the parkade, Lawrence found himself locked in, and unable to call to get out. Before he could get back in his car, he was attacked and rendered unconscious by Jigsaw.
When he awoke, he and Adam were shackled to pipes on opposite sides of a grimy industrial bathroom. Between them, just out of their reach, was what appeared to be a dead man who'd shot himself in the head, lying in a pool of poisoned blood. A gun was clutched in one of the dead man's hands, with a cassette player in the other. Working together, Lawrence and Adam learned what they had to do to escape, from a pair of cassette tapes which left them clues about objects around the room.
Lawrence learned that he had to kill Adam by 6:00 if he wished to escape, also learning that his wife and daughter's lives were at stake as well. Enclosed with the tape was a key and a bullet for the dead man's gun. Both Adam and Lawrence were supplied with hacksaws, which they found were unable to cut through their chains. It was then that Lawrence realized that they were meant to cut through their feet, not their chains.
By following the clues, Lawrence also managed to obtain a box (which his key opened) that contained a couple of cigarettes, a one-way cell phone, and a lighter. Also in the box was a note, meant just for him, that told him that he didn't have to shoot Adam, but could instead poison him with one of the cigarettes, if it were dipped in the toxic blood puddle.
He then informed Adam that he knew that the Jigsaw Killer was the one behind the "game", and revealed that he was once suspected to be Jigsaw. Lawrence then received a call from his daughter and wife, both being held hostage by Zep Hindle, telling him not to believe Adam. He then discovered that Adam had been taking pictures of him for Detective Tapp.
The two men ran out of time, and Lawrence, desperate to save his family, cut through his leg to free himself. He then crawled over to the corpse, took the gun, loaded it and shot Adam in the shoulder.
Later, Zep showed up in the bathroom. Lawrence, furious, tried to attack and shoot Zep with the empty gun. Zep was about to kill him when Adam attacked and killed Zep by beating him with the toilet lid. Lawrence then told Adam that he had to go and get help for both of them, or else he would bleed to death. Adam begged Lawrence not to leave, but Lawrence assured Adam that he would bring someone back to save him. He then crawled out of the bathroom.
There is no later mention of whether he lived or died. Although Lawrence does not appear any other time in the series, he is mentioned in Saw III, and his severed foot is seen in Saw II and Saw III. He also appeared in a brief flashback, in which he was unconscious and didn't have a speaking role. His name plate is also seen in Saw II and again in Saw IV when explaining the history of John Kramer. It was revealed in Saw III that he and Lynn Denlon worked at the same hospital. Also in Saw IV, Dr. Gordon is referenced to, but not by name, when Detective Fisk notes that another doctor from the hospital went missing (referring to Dr. Denlon); the "another" is in reference to the fact that Dr. Gordon went missing before Dr. Denlon.
A special feature in the form of a farce documentary called "Piecing Together Jigsaw," available on the unrated edition of the first film, stated that his whereabouts are unknown as of one year after the first film's events. When Lawrence is mentioned in Saw III, Jigsaw said that he had been Lawrence's patient, and Lawrence had been his.
When Leigh Whannel asked Cary Elwes what he thought about his character's fate on the commentary for the Saw: Uncut Edition DVD, Elwes responded with, "Let's face it, guys. He's severed his whole leg off. The loss of blood alone, even with that pathetic tourniquet he made with his shirt. It's a wrap. He's not going to get two blocks."
In August 2005, actor Cary Elwes filed a lawsuit against his management firm and the producers of Saw. He alleged that he was promised "a minimum of one percent of the producers' net profits" and did not receive the full amount as promised.[1] Also, Darren Lynn Bousman has said on the DVD commentaries for Saw IV that his intent was to leave Dr. Gordon's fate an unanswered question and let fans make up their own minds.
[edit] Alison Gordon
- Alison Gordon was portrayed by Monica Potter.
Alison appeared in Saw as Lawrence Gordon's wife. She was angry with him because she knew he lied to her, and because he was always busy with his job. Alison, along with her daughter Diana, was taken hostage by Zep Hindle in another game created by Jigsaw. If Lawrence failed to kill Adam by 6:00, Zep would be forced to kill the mother and daughter to save himself (Jigsaw injected a poison into him, and the only way that he could acquire the antidote was to kill Dr. Gordon's family). Lawrence failed, but Alison had managed to free herself from her ropes. She attacked Zep and grabbed his gun, taking control and via cell phone, trying to find the location of her husband. A momentary distraction prevented further conversation and Zep regained control. Tapp's interference soon after allowed Allison to escape with her daughter.
[edit] Diana Gordon
- Diana Gordon was portrayed by Makenzie Vega.
Diana appeared in Saw as Lawrence Gordon's daughter. She was worried that her father was going to leave her mother. She, along with her mother Alison, was taken hostage by Zep Hindle in another game created by Jigsaw. If Lawrence failed to kill Adam by 6:00, Zep would be forced to kill the mother and daughter to save himself (Jigsaw injected a poison into him, and the only way that he could acquire the antidote was to kill Dr. Gordon's family). Lawrence failed, but Diana managed to escape with her mother.
[edit] References
- ^ "Saw lawsuit", theage.com.au, 20 August 2005.
[edit] External links
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