Man vs. Society

Rating: 10/10 (21 September 2016)

Rarely does a thriller murder film draw in the audience from start to end without presenting predictable foreshadowing. From the opening credits leaving out Kevin Spacey's name to the consistent "one step behind the killer" storyline, Se7en accomplishes a dramatic theme of leaving the audience in a dynamic naïve state through the eyes of Mills and Somerset. Although the acting was emotionally and physically precise, it was the cinematography and lighting that generated the dreary setting and interactions throughout the film, often evoking the appropriately timed tension and emotion. Presented beyond the surface, however, Se7en calls upon a society accusation through the thread of Dante's "Seven Deadly Sins." Se7en indirectly advocates that society, as a whole, is migrating towards an inevitable abyss filled with specialization in many of these deadly sins. Even though humans may be ignorant to this path, it continues to occur all around us until we become dragged into it, just like Mills in the ending. The only individual within Se7en that posed a dichotomous relation was Somerset; as he continued to logically view the world in awe of the irrevocability. Somerset and Doe both saw the world in this 3rd person perspective, but their actions represented their individual commitment to the change of society. Doe was willing to take action in an upsetting demonstration, but Somerset continually wanted to escape the world in a hopeless fashion. Therefore, Se7en displays multiple protagonists and antagonists throughout the movie. On the surface, Mills and Somerset are the protagonists trying to stop the killer, John Doe, who is the antagonist. Indirectly being argued, however, is that Doe and Somerset are the protagonists with opposing plans towards the change in societal nature (being represented as the antagonist through the seven deadly sins characters including Mills). That is why I give Se7en a 10/10 for its ability to draw in the audience through cinematography, lighting, plot, and controversial character dynamic throughout the entire film.