FILM (1995)
Seven Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Kevin Spacey Director: David Fincher
In a sense the suspense on which thrillers are usually based is done away with in David Fincher's Seven. Once the obese man is found dead face down in a plateful of spaghetti with the word gluttony written in grease on his kitchen wall, it's apparent that the subsequent murders are intended to illustrate the biblical seven deadly sins: gluttony, greed, sloth, lust, pride, envy and wrath.
What is striking about the murders is the brutality and patience shown by the perpetrator. It takes more than a year of torture before the victim of sloth is put to rest. The woman tarred with lust is raped and stabbed. At the conclusion of each murder the victim is laid out in a vile, almost biblical tableaux, a visual lesson for the viewer of the consequences of the deadly sin for which the victim was punished.
While the plot may be somewhat predictable, Seven stands out because of its feel. Director David Fincher plunges the viewer into a grimy modern-day film noir. It's a dark, discordant world made all the more atmospheric by Howard Shore's jittery score.
Seven also boasts an intense attention to detail, whether it be the disturbing opening credits featuring the killer's densely written diary or shots of skin shaved by razor blades.
Murky lighting and near-constant rain convey the moral and material degradation of the nameless US city where Fincher set the film and where the apathy of the residents is said to reflect Fincher's own unhappy experience of living in New York.
Soon-to-retire detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) and rookie detective Mills (Brad Pitt) reluctantly work together to solve the murders. Pitt has ably made his mark elsewhere, but here he is a little too like an overeager puppy from the sticks and he tends to bluster through scenes.
Conversely, Freeman dominates. His is a poised, considered performance. While he is repulsed by the city, a place that he believes 'nurtures apathy', Somerset can't help but want to do what's right, even though altruism seems to be at odds with his police colleagues.
Gwyneth Paltrow as Mill's wife Tracey seems to be one of the film's few characters of light, but trapped in their apartment, she and her husband find that they are ill-equipped to deal with the true venality of the city.
In keeping with the film, Seven's denouement is unusually grim. Fincher was put under pressure to tone it down, fortunately Pitt's argument that he would only promote the film if the ending was retained meant it survived.
