The release of Saw III is looming, and with the success of the previous two Lionsgate is hot to pimp the hell out of the next one. To help you start loosening up your cash, they're planning something special.

Our Lionsgate rep informs me that they're releasing the entire first scene of the film to serve as a Saw III advertisement. As a strategy, that's nothing new. We've seen this before. What's different is that they aren't dropping it on the internet, they're playing it in theaters in front of Jason Statham's Crank on September 1st.

The extended clip will debut there, presumably along with the previews, or maybe as a special clip before the film the way theaters used to show prelude cartoons.

They weren't able to tell me how long the scene is, but presumably if it's a full scene it'll be longer than your average trailer. As a marketing idea, maybe this is a good idea. But as an audience pleaser, I'm not sure this is the way to go. I love a good trailer, but maybe I'm not interested in Saw III. I'm not sure I want to sit through the whole first few minutes of the film just to see Crank. Lionsgate may be running the risk of beating audiences down as much as exciting them.

Meanwhile, if you are excited about Saw III, make sure you check out our Saw III photo gallery here. I've just loaded it up with new stills.