‘Se7en’ is Still Horrifyingly Good!
Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt in Se7en | Credit: New Line Cinema
When a serial killer begins murdering people related to the seven deadly sins, a world-weary cop close to retirement and his new partner are tasked with the case. And their investigation leads to some truly devastating consequences.
Se7en is such a vibe! I read that David Fincher described this as a black and white film in color, and that’s exactly what this movie is. Though it is in color, everything feels gray. It’s as if you’re seeing the world through Somerset’s (Morgan Freeman) eyes, who has been worn down by this city after trying to serve and protect for decades. We feel the cynicism and weariness as we watch these two detectives try their best to catch a killer who is often multiple steps ahead of them.
One aspect that I appreciate about this film is that our two protagonists often feel like underdogs. Somerset seems to understand the killer to some degree; he might be on his level intellectually, but he’s exhausted. He’s retiring in just a few days, with that clock ticking down day by day.
Mills (Brad Pitt), Somerset’s new partner, is clearly ill-equipped for the task. While he’s not new to being a detective, nor is he a bad cop, he just operates differently in the world. We know that once Somerset retires, there is no way that Mills (and likely the other cops on the force) will be able to catch him. This means that they have to find this criminal this week, before Somerset’s retirement goes into effect.
Se7en never lets us forget about this ticking clock that these detectives are facing. We know what day of the week it is; Somerset’s retirement gets closer day by day. That creates so much tension and perfectly sets the stakes throughout the film. Not only is this person murdering people in horrific ways, but he might go free if these two cops aren’t able to catch him… together.
Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt in Se7en | Credit: New Line Cinema
Somerset and Mills, on paper, might seem like your typical partners that you’d see in any cop show or movie. And there are plenty of aspects of both these characters that are archetypal. But the great performances from Freeman and Pitt help make these characters feel real. They aren’t caricatures, which helps them both seem like real human beings that might exist in the world.
Somerset is book smart, but he is still able to read and empathize with others. His distance from other people seems to come more from his world-weariness and apathy, rather than an inability to connect. He has such a connection to humanity that he has chosen to shut that side of himself off, which is an interesting pairing to his intellectual and methodological side.
Mills, on the other hand, is not book smart, but he does have the ability to influence others and can sometimes have a way with words. Other times, his mouth gets him into trouble. There’s also a naivete about him that you don’t expect to find in a cop, especially one who has been on the force for some years. He still wants to make a difference in the world, even if he sometimes goes about that in odd ways.
These two are a perfect pairing; they are foils of one another, but they also help each other grow. They both help the other with some of the blind spots in their lives, even if they aren’t appreciative in the moment.
Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt in Se7en | Credit: New Line Cinema
The writing in Se7en is fantastic! There are so many set-ups and pay-offs throughout the film. This is one that really does reward you for paying close attention to what people are saying and doing. What might seem like off-handed conversations help set up something that comes 30 minutes later. Each subsequent re-watch has helped me see more and more of these moments, which has made me appreciate this film even more.
From the writing, to the directing, to the editing, to the acting, this film is excellent. It’s dark and cynical and sometimes difficult to get through, but it’s so technically excellent that I keep wanting to revisit it again and again. David Fincher has made some really great movies over the years, and this is absolutely one of his best.
Se7en came out 30 years ago, and it’s still thrilling to watch today, no matter how many times you’ve seen it before.