Seven (DVD)

...meaning of each of the seven sins. These are useful to know as then you will have a better understanding of the psyche employed by the killer (John Doe):

Pride - Seeing ourselves as we are and not comparing ourselves to others is humility. Pride and vanity are competitive. If someone else's pride really bothers you, you have a lot of pride.

Greed - This is about more than money. It is giving without having expectations ...
...Somerset: “Well for the next seven days detective, (I hope) you’ll do me the favour and remember that.”

As a short aside to the film, perhaps it is a sign of our society that I wasn’t too shocked when I saw the deaths and the direction was not particularly scary although it did well to build the tension throughout. This combined, with the slightly unassuming and unemotional (until the final scene) acting, particularly by Pitt let the ... more

Se7en (1995)
Directed by David Fincher

CAST
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Morgan Freeman .... Detective Lt. William Somerset
Brad Pitt .... Detective David Mills
Kevin Spacey .... John Doe
Gwyneth Paltrow .... Tracy Mills
R. Lee Ermey .... Police Captain
Andrew Kevin Walker .... Dead Man (as Andy Walker)
Daniel Zacapa .... Detective Taylor
John Cassini .... Officer Davis
Bob Mack .... Gluttony Victim

FILM DVD FEATURES
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16x9 Letterboxed version
English Subtitles
{English Stereo Surround Sound
{English Dolby EX 5.1
{English DTS ES Discreet 6.1
{All sound from near field mix created specifically for the DVD}

BACKGROUND
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Picture the scene….rain droplets glide to ground, soaking the young detective as he racks his brains and fights with his emotions to discover the whereabouts of the new killer. More and more deaths occurring….just who is doing this? He gets a call and races to the crime scene with his new partner. It’s happened again and the writing is well and truly on the wall.

With the cunningly used number “7” used as a replacement for “v” in the title, I was expecting something cheesy and bland enough for the production team to warrant modifying the title in the first place. How wrong I was!

Seven, or Se7en, is a crime thriller/horror set out to make your blood curdle and keep behinds on the edges of sofas as the mature detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) and his young understudy Mills (Brad Pitt) struggle to decipher the meaning behind the recent killings in the area. With gruesome events taking place, these two are the Police Department’s hope to find the serial murderer and the film glides along well at the beginning, setting the scene well. This is where the film excels, the director could have become very lazy in between these macabre proceedings, but Fincher builds the tension and suspense well so that when they occur, the viewer has been set up to receive more of a shock to the system. Howard Shore’s fantastic score comes into its own here as the soundtrack fits the scenes perfectly. For this DVD version of Se7en, you can hear this in magnificent 5.1 Dolby Digital if you are lucky to take advantage of this, however a decent sound system will suffice as the melodies boom out to chillingly good effect. Also on the first DVD is music effects and commentary by Richard Dyer, David Fincher and sound designer Ren Klyce.

As a background to the films core plot, I have attempted to explain the meaning of each of the seven sins. These are useful to know as then you will have a better understanding of the psyche employed by the killer (John Doe):

Pride - Seeing ourselves as we are and not comparing ourselves to others is humility. Pride and vanity are competitive. If someone else's pride really bothers you, you have a lot of pride.

Greed - This is about more than money. It is giving without having expectations of the other person. Greed wants to get its "fair share" or a bit more.

Envy – Envy resents the good others receive or even might receive. Envy is almost indistinguishable from pride at times.

Wrath - Anger is often our first reaction to the problems of others. Impatience with the faults of others is related to this.

Lust - The self-destructive drive for pleasure out of proportion to its worth. Sex, power, or image can be used well, but they tend to go out of control.

Gluttony - This does not pertain only to food, but to entertainment and other legitimate goods, and even the company of others.

Sloth - Zeal is the energetic response of the heart to God's commands. The other sins work together to deaden the spiritual senses so we first become slow to respond to

THE FILM
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John Doe leaves each sins’ name on the wall or around the scene of each of the victims murder and this leads Somerset to research as to the origin of these killings. Doe isn’t seen properly until near the end of the film and when he begins to talk candidly about what he has been doing, it raises questions of human society about what are the real sins, such as severe jealously (envy) and eating in excess (sloth), compared to the massacre of his victims (murder). Obviously this guy has a screw loose, but Doe is calm and collected throughout which suggests his calculating nature is the result of an event(s) in his past, but this avenue is not is not explored in the film. Personally I would have liked to see a lot more of him in Se7en, as his inclusion is a breath of fresh air when he finally appears as a recognisable character.

As his last case before he retires, Somerset is not particularly happy that the nature of it is such, but takes the energetic and effusive Mills under his wing to help his transition.

Mills: “I worked in homicide 5 years.”
Somerset: “Not here.”
Mills: “I understand that…”
Somerset: “Well for the next seven days detective, (I hope) you’ll do me the favour and remember that.”

As a short aside to the film, perhaps it is a sign of our society that I wasn’t too shocked when I saw the deaths and the direction was not particularly scary although it did well to build the tension throughout. This combined, with the slightly unassuming and unemotional (until the final scene) acting, particularly by Pitt let the film down in parts when it could have been more devastatingly chilling and macabre to shock the audience to their foundation. Morgan Freeman however added something special as the hardened detective, a skilled but not arrogant presence to his young partner as they teamed up to solve the case. I’m not saying that Pitt acted badly in the film, as in most scenes he played the part of the detective well, but in some he was inexpressive and slightly unbelievable personally. Perhaps this was due to the character of Detective Mills as the inexperienced and brash understudy to the cool and collected Somerset? I’m not sure.

As the story unfolds, the viewer is stunned as each of the murder’s progress to the next. Warning: the way in which these are presented are very disturbing and this film should not be watched if you are of a squeamish nature. It really is rated 18 for a reason and not one to give to the kids and the babysitter if you go out for the evening. I haven’t mentioned Tracy Mills (Paltrow), Mills’ wife yet, but she has an important role as to the ending of Se7en that I will not disclose in this opinion. She is a believable character and the relationship of Mills and his wife is a good one, pinning the film together.

I can’t write this review without at least giving a paragraph to Fincher’s direction, as the photography is a masterpiece of dark and sinister hues for the majority of the duration. Suspense is built well and care is given to enamour the audience to the detectives, while continuing to shock them into disbelief to the developments of the thriller. The relationship between Morgan and Pitt is constructed well, with the two characters endeared to the audience slowly. This is realised by the many nice little touches, for example both of them shaving together and the events which are important to development, including Somerset being invited to dinner and Tracy using him as a confident when she had no-one else to turn to.

Trying hard not to spoil the ending of this macabre journey for any potential viewer, it is truly shocking and out-does any of the earlier occurrences in the film. It provides a gripping finale, although I would have liked to know more of what happened to Mills and Somerset afterwards and the shockwaves that it undoubtably would have produced. Was Mills in the right? I will let you decide!

If you like this kind of mystery/crime thriller/horror, with slightly twisted events and turns, then this film will definitely fit the bill as in places is a real tour de force executed fantastically by Fincher. Check out Fight Club, also directed by him for the next ride into philosophical questioning.

DVD EXTRAS
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The second DVD is packed full of Se7en goodness and helps to give an understanding of the direction and underlying themes running in the movie. For me personally, the extras really finish the experience off nicely, watching an intriguing film like this one, then having a separate ending (even if in story board form) is a real treat and supplants the film in my mind as true greatness.

Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence:::
- Video storyboards of the rough and final versions, with audio commentary by the designer and audio engineers.

Deleted Scenes and Extended takes:::
- Scenes, which didn’t make the final editing, cut (7 in total) with commentary by David Fincher.

Production Design and Still Photographs with Commentaries:::
- Animated galleries showing photos from John Doe’s apartment and the crime scenes with commentary by the photographers.

The Notebooks:::
- Full motion video details the writings of John Doe.

Promotional Materials:::
- The original theatrical trailer and EPK.

Filmographies:::
- Check out film credits of select cast and crew members.

Mastering for the Home Theatre:::
- A behind the scenes look at Se7en including alternate angles and audio tracks.

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Thanks for reading! 

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