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Se7en (1995)

A review by Damian Cannon.
Copyright © Movie Reviews UK 1997
Gluttony. Greed. Sloth. Pride. Lust.Envy. Wrath. Both the seven deadly sins and the basis for the best psychological, intelligent thriller of recent times. William Somerset (Morgan Freeman) has existed in this anonymous city for decades, mostly on the homicide squad. The time for his (voluntary) retirement is fast approaching, hence he is joined by his keen, young replacement David Mills (Brad Pitt) for his final week. Somerset has no particular interest in hand-holding his enthusiastic partner, leading to friction as Mills trys to prove his worth. Life is rarely that easy though, as we see when called to an unusual murder. In a small apartment a grossly fat man is slumped at a table, face down in a plate of pasta sauce. By the lights of flickering torches (the lights never work in this film!) we see the distended veins covering his body, the ropes tying him to the chair and the rows of tins of tomato sauce.

Somerset suspects hidden depths to this motiveless homicide, who wouldn't?, but asks to be taken off of a case which could drag on forever. There is no escape for Somerset, of course. The next day a second corpse turns up - this time a rich, high-profile lawyer is found with the word 'greed' written, in his own blood, on the floor next to him. Forensics turn up clues on the first murder leading Somerset to discover the word 'gluttony' at the murder scene. Putting the clues together (which no one else is able to do) Somerset predicts another five murders, based on the sins mentioned. Knowing the motive doesn't help that much though -- the killer is far too clever, leaving clues which point the cops to his next victim but don't give anything away. The third sin, sloth, is graphically illustrated by a man tied to a bed; for a year! The power of the scene, in semi-darkness with Christmas tree air-fresheners hanging from the ceiling, is immense.

A lucky break for Mills and Somerset allows them to track down the serial killer leading to an astonishingly intense, scary and gripping chase as they pursue the killer through darkened passageways and rain-swept alleys. He slips from their grasp but not before we realise just how calm, resourceful and intelligent their opponent is. The rate of murders, and the pace of the film, picks up as the killer indicates his feelings on 'pride' and 'lust'. Somehow, though, he is just out of reach for the detectives as they frantically try to track him down - with little success. That is until the killer walks in to their police-station, blood dripping from his fingers. Why? Somerset and Mills know that he's toying with them but for what purpose, with two murders to complete? With this build-up the finale is explosive, psychotic, manipulative and shocking in the extreme.

Darkness, rain, silence, noise, photos -- this is a film which assaults all of the senses. We can smell the decay of the festering corpses, just as the killer intended. Yet despite this graphic overload it doesn't feel like an overlong pop video due to the strong central performances by Freeman, Pitt and the killer. Even in a cinema the claustrophobia overwhelms us as the mutilations committed become increasingly horrific without ever showing us the actual murders. With the feel of Blade Runner and the insanity of The Silence of the Lambs this is a memorable experience despite several obvious plot-holes.

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