Se7en (1995)-"R"

Run Time:123 minutes

4 stars out of 4

Se7en is one of those films that everyone was talking about when it first came out. I have to agree with all of those people who blabbed about the film, I couldn't stop thinking about it myself after I first saw it, and it's natural for people to speak their minds when unnerving is on your mind. Directed by David Fincher, also known for Fight Club, The Game, and Alien 3, Se7en was completely captivating, suspenseful, and downright scary. The plot follows two NYC police detectives, one a rookie, David Mills (Brad Pitt), and another, a hard-boiled veteran seven days from retirement, William Somerset (Morgan Freeman). Their first day on the job together, the two investigate a gruesome crime scene, where a morbidly obese man has been forced to eat himself to death. The very next day, a wealthy district attorney was forced to cut off a pound of his own flesh and bled to death, with "GREED" spelled on the floor in blood. Somerset realizes that a serial killer is killing a victim for each of the seven deadly sins: Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Lust, Pride, Envy, and Wrath. Together the two detectives race to stop the killer before another person is methodically killed. This film is not a "whodunit?", meaning you don't spend the whole film trying to guess who the real killer is from a cast of suspects. Se7en focuses more on the crimes and the detection process, like the "Law" half of Law & Order. I don't want to give up too much about the crimes commited by the killer, they are the whole reason to see the film, but I will reveal the killer, becaus his identity doesn't really matter to the suspense of the plot. The killer is John Doe (Kevin Spacey), a religious fanatic, who is obssesed with stamping out the daily toleration of deadly sins. Spacey is incredible as Doe, and this role proves that he be an excellent actor in a broad range of roles. Pitt plays his usual cocky character, and Freeman his usual solemn and brilliant character, but they do it well, as usual. Darius Khondji's cinematography paints a bleak and frightening urban landscape that is incredibly realistic. Like I said before, the crimes in this film are amazing, and the writer, Andrew Kevin Walker, must have had some pretty strange demons himself to be able to think up these disturbing and minutely detailed murders. Fincher's Se7en is downright disturbing at parts (i.e. the Lust murder), but it's not without its own moral message. This film is definitely not for sensitive or young viewers, but it is well worth a view for brave individuals.