Se7en

Rating: 9/10 (9 June 2013)

Ever seen hell on earth? Probably not. David Fincher shows the closest thing you shall ever see with his depiction of a story of a serial killer meting out punishments to the people committing the seven deadly sins within an anonymous American city with its perpetual silvery rain, the scantiness of light and the constant depressing atmosphere that lurks over your shoulder all the time with an air of melancholy all around. This movie makes for a gory, gloomy and an uncomfortable watch but mind you the mystery is ever so riveting that it keeps you glued to the edge of your seats till the very end. David Fincher, Andrew Walker and Darius Khondji have created such a masterpiece that this movie can rightly be called as the worthy successor to the "Silence of the lambs" in regards to the serial killer genre. The movie has a neo noir feel due to the scant usage of light and the constant rains in this unnamed anonymous city. The storyline goes into a realm of its own, where a serial killer is on a carefully planned elaborate spree that dwells into an analysis of a mad man's mind who is convinced that he has been sent on this earth to bring to the attention to the common people that all they have been doing on this earth is sins , and the way he chooses to catch the attention of the commoners is by punishing the sinners in ways he feels fit. Morgan Freeman plays William Somerset a veteran soon-to-retire detective with his partner David Mills being the idealistic but rash rookie played by Brad Pitt. They meet up on a site of a murder scene, a pictorial description of which may force many of us to throw up, and then from there on unfolds a saga consisting of crime unimaginable and so gory that to say it is savagery would be an understatement. The detectives get embroiled in the case and each day brings to them crimes of such barbarity that makes you think of the killer as an equivalent to Satan himself. First comes Gluttony with an obese man forced to feed until he bursts. Second is greed with a lawyer forced to exact a pound of flesh from his own body. Third is Sloth with a drug addict tied to his bed for over a year. Fourth in line is Lust with a hooker brutally murdered while being involved in the act. Fifth in the cycle is Pride with what seems to be an actress who has been horribly disfigured and is given a choice to call for help and live a life with the mutilation or to commit suicide thus saving grace. And the last two sins Envy and Wrath make up for the most exciting ending to a story I have seen in my life. The brutality of the punishments captured on screen, (dare I say) in my opinion could have only been done by Fincher and Tarantino, which each murder scene being exponentially more brutal than the previous. The background score is so perfect in maintaining the horrific atmosphere that it's a compliment to the work Howard Shore himself has done over the years , the diversity of work he has done made him the perfect choice for the composer of such a film. The acting by the leads Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt and Kevin Spacey only consolidates the class in which they stand, amongst the greatest of our times. All in all, this movie is classic modern horror with a twist/finale to die for. The movie, from the sensory assaulting title sequence to the nerve wracking finale goes for your gut and makes you feed on it all the while constantly gnawing on your brain until you give up and starting believing that the place you live in is truly an infernal cesspool. This movie leaves you reeling, emotionally and mentally and you have a feeling of having been robbed of mental peace. I leave you with this advice - Try not to expect it to be a comfortable viewing.