Se7en

Everyone has their favorite films that they watch ad nauseam to the irritation of everyone else in the household. A common showing after the kids go to bed in this house is Seven (also known as Se7en), much to the dismay of my squeamish about horror movies husband. Although he never fails to ask dramatically, “what’s in the box?” when a package arrives, so I doubt he dislikes the movies as much as he insists. This 1995 film delivers what I like to think of as an unapologetic view into the life’s work of a truly calculating and petrifying psycho.

Near retirement detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) teams up with the new transfer, Mills

Strike a serious detective pose

(Brad Pitt) to solve a series of horrific murders that have the common theme of the 7 deadly sins. Like many stories featuring detectives, our protagonists have personal struggles they are dealing with while they delve deeper into the case. Somerset is contemplative of his upcoming life change from detective to retiree. Mills is adjusting to the move and ambitious to make a name for himself in the new department. Mills wife is trying to figure out what to do about her pregnancy, which she has kept secret from her husband, as she feels the city would be a bad place to raise a child. These personal character arcs seamlessly support the main plot rather than distract. They also help flesh out Somerset and Mills personalities in the time restrictive format of a fast paced thriller type movie.

Gore can be a tricky element to handle in psycho horror. Too much and you enter the realm of “gore porn” in which the carnage becomes almost laughable in it’s over exposure. Too little blood and guts and the story might become lack luster, feeling like the psychological tension building never reaches a payoff.  Seven handles the gore brilliantly.

The killer, John Doe (Kevin Spacey), has spent a great deal of effort and time perfectly setting

At least he used some air fresheners

his murder scenes to express his message. Therefore, these visuals aren’t skimmed over as they are vital to the plot and theme of the film. The murder scenes are disturbing and hit the audience exactly as they should. Viewers feel appalled with Doe’s “work” while becoming fascinated with how Doe patiently executed and thoroughly planned out the serial killings. In this manner, each crime scene is brutal with purpose. None of what is shown comes off as needless violence shown for pure shock value, as the details of Doe’s murders are vital to the plot.

My love of symbolism won’t allow me to neglect discussing how Doe preaches his message through the murders. While many, if not most, killers follow a pattern when killing, Doe uses a different and specific method for each of the sins. Each murder technique (and torture technique in the case of Sloth) is tailored to use the very idea of the sin to kill the victim, like over-eating to the point of death for Gluttony. The only common clue connecting them for the detectives is the name of the sin found at each scene. This is the best serial killer message execution I can think of in fiction. It’s impossible not to understand Doe’s intent is to show the 7 deadly sins are alive and well in modern society.

The ending of this film still has people reeling 20 years later. Generally, people expect psycho

If you're going to surrender, do it in style

stories to end with the protagonist besting the killer in some manner. All of the stories we have reviewed this term have followed that structure (American Psycho excluded). This is to return the audience from their terrifying experience in the story back to safe reality. The boogeyman has been conquered and now the audience can go back to sleeping at night. That’s not how this film wraps up. Although Doe dies, making him incapable of killing again, he completes his work and message by adding the last two sins. The idea that a psycho can finish all his intended targets off  leaves the audience apprehensive.

Many people dislike stories where the villain(s) wins in the end. They might feel jibbed as they have been rooting for the protagonist(s) throughout the story. That is understandable. In Seven, Doe completes his 7 deadly sins including himself as Envy and Mills as Wrath. He’s victorious in bringing his message to fruition. More alarming, the audience realizes he has been in control of the situation the entire film. Everything went according to his plan. The detectives never caught him, he

Caution Fragile

surrendered. He led them out to the exact spot at the exact time his package was set to arrive. He provoked Mills into doing exactly as he wanted. The iconic line, “what’s in the box?!?!” is that clear moment when the audience realizes the story isn’t the safe controlled variety and the psycho has been at the helm through it all. Personally, I love this sort of hard hitting ending. It’s this break from the standard structure that makes the film the classic it is.

Overall, this is a must see. It’s a uniquely chilling story, with an unforgettable psycho, and amazing acting performances. Grab a comfort item if you’re squeamish and prepare to be haunted by this film far after the credits have finished.