Se7en (1995)

Two detectives, a rookie and a veteran, hunt a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as his modus operandi.

Top 250 #27

Year of Release: 1995

Running Time: 127 min.

MPAA Rating: R

Director – David Fincher

Cast:

Brad Pitt – Detective David Mills
Morgan Freeman – Detective Lt. William Somerset
Gwyneth Paltrow – Tracy Mills
R. Lee Ermey – Police Captain

Se7en is an incredible film brought to us by David Fincher. In an unidentified city of near-constant rain and urban decay, the soon-to-be retiring Detective William R. Somerset (Freeman) is partnered with short-tempered Detective David Mills (Pitt) who recently transferred to the department. They are a pair of homicide detectives who become deeply involved in the case of a sadistic serial killer. What they discover is that the killer is inspired by Dante Alighieri’s seven deadly sins from “The Divine Comedy”, and is on a mission to preach about man’s impurity, and does so by targeting victims, then torturing them by pitting their own underlining sins against them. Each meticulously planned murder corresponds to one of the seven deadly sins: gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, pride, lust, and envy.

In a strange move, we actually never see any of the murders happen on-screen. We do get to witness the aftermath of the murders though, and Fincher doesn’t hold back in the blood and gore stakes. Whilst never being overly graphic, some of the murder scenes are not pleasant to look at. A couple of examples are seeing a man who has literally eaten himself to death, and at the opposite end of the scale we see a man who has been starved for a year. Little bits of information the detectives can gather on their killer are that he is dedicated enough to starve someone and watch over him for a year, doing enough just to keep him alive and therefore prolong his suffering.

Eventually the detectives track down a man named John Doe who has frequently checked out books from a library related to the deadly sins. I want to use the same tactic the films marketing team used and keep silent on the identity of the killer. Despite being an A-list actor, this person in real life received no billing or acknowledgement as being in the film. It then comes as a big surprise when the killers identity is revealed, and if possible elevates the overall experience of the movie. I can’t imagine a film these days getting away with keeping a huge secret like that, some sneaky paparazzi would get hold of it for example. A lot of reviews I have read give away the name of the actor, so I really wanted to try and steer clear of that, in the hope that even if one person who hasn’t seen the movie and sees it based on my review will enjoy the revelation and be surprised. Always more fun trying to watch a film like this and guessing the killer from the clues your given rather than just know who to look out for in my opinion.

The acting on display was top drawer. Brad Pitt has never been better, a young guy who is good at his job and new to the scene. Unbeknown to him, his wife is pregnant but scared to bring up their child in this new town. She confides in Morgan Freeman’s character, and the scenes between Freeman and Paltrow are sweet to watch. Speaking of Morgan Freeman, he was born to play this kind of role, and is very reminiscent of other cop roles he has played, just effortlessly brilliant. Even going as far as understanding the lessons John Doe is trying to give, rather than just dismissing him as a lunatic. As for John Doe himself, just a truly terrifying and creepy performance whilst giving off such a calm demeanour and an absolute belief that he is doing Gods work, all brilliantly portrayed by an incredible actor.

Se7en was filmed with specially altered film stock which made the visuals look as dark and unsettling as possible. The sinister music score from Howard Shore keeps the heart pounding throughout and keeps the audience uncomfortable. The opening and closing credits are superb, just a real visual treat and so different. Everything about this film is dark but yet rewarding to watch. The script is excellent, full of twists and turns, and even the ending is different to most Hollywood style scripts. Apparently Brad Pitt refused to make the movie if the producers tried to change the ending. After seeing the alternate ending and reading about the one they wanted to change it to, I’m so glad they went with the one they did, one of the most memorable movie endings I’ve ever seen.

In closing, what may sound on paper like a routine film about a cop days away from retiring, partnered with the new rookie whist hunting down a bad guy, doesn’t even come close to describing what goes on in this film. In one of the best cat and mouse style hunts I’ve ever seen, with so many twists and turns, clue after clue left to try and decipher, all the time trying to piece together the puzzle as to who this killer is, Se7en is a masterclass in story telling and an incredible piece of cinema. The ending is perfect and ties together the whole film, and the way the seven deadly sins are shown and worked out is breathtaking. Brutal and gory it may be, but please don’t let this put you off if you have somehow never seen Se7en. A story this good deserves and demands to be seen. Definitely on a par with Silence of the Lambs as the best serial killer film in my opinion.

Did you know? It is raining every day in the movie except for the last day. The reason is less about thematic issues and more about continuity. It rained on the first day that Brad Pitt filmed so they kept it going as they were rushing to do all of Pitt’s scenes before he left to go make Twelve Monkeys. 

IMDB rating 8.7/10

Tyson’s rating 9/10

Posted by Tysoncarter182 on July 18, 2012

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