Strange and inconsistent

Rating: Null/10 (22 September 2009)

Pitt is miscast. This film is supposedly about a killer finding victims to 'hash' with the seven deadly sins. It's still a rather arbitrary selection. The killer is almost supernaturally agile. When we discover it's Spacey, the audience says - huh? But somehow we believe him in the role, and forget about the agility earlier on. But not Pitt. Freeman narrates (as he does in films) with his dialog to try to paint Pitt as impulsive. But Pitt's character is controlled, and insecure. He's more worried about how people see him than he is to run into a burning building to save a puppy. While Pacino would have been too old to play 'the kid', someone more like Pacino would have been better; nervy, neurotic, quick to assume, etc.
They get a lead on Spacey, after figuring out they have a cluster of serial murders to begin with, by saying to themselves - now what kind of books would a vicious torturer check out of the public library. And I said - . . . . ? wha? I guess we take 'googling' for granted these days. Back in the day, everyone got their info by checking out public library books? What's more, Freeman is tied in to an underground source network that can get him FBI or CIA or whatever data. How does that matter? Well, you see, apparently the FBI or CIA or whatever was keeping track of who checks out which books from - the public library. So they ran a list of books and got back Stacey's name. They go to his apartment, he's coming down the long hallway with some groceries. They see him. He sees them. He pulls a gun and starts shooting. Suffice to say, he climbs the buildings and run the streets of the city better than Spiderman. And he corners Pitt on the ground, puts a gun to his head, but then runs.
Next we know, Spacey comes into Pitt's police station, covered in blood, and surrenders himself. Pitt and Freeman say, they guy's going for seven murders. They had only five at that point. Spacey says, I'll show you guys. But it has to be youse guys. They say - show us.
So they drive out into the desert by a cluster of electrical towers. And they stop for Spacey to lead them off into a field. There's a chopper shadowing them. But only Freeman notices a van barreling towards them. He jumps in his car, blocks the road, and orders the van driver out. Meanwhile, Pitt has Spacey kneel and Spacey takes the moment to reveal his dastardly plan. He's already visited Pitt's home. He's abused his wife, murdered her, and chopped off her head. And he says - that's her head coming now. Van driver says he got $500 to deliver a box. Freeman looks inside the box. Pitt on the radio asks the question. And by the time Freeman drives back to Pitt and Spacey, Pitt is just about to pull the trigger. So Freeman says - don't do it. But he does it and gets hauled away for murder. Spacey was counting on Pitt to shoot him as the seventh - whichever sin Spacey's character associated with himself. I didn't catch which he though was the wife's sin.
Like I said, a Pacino type would have been much better in that role played by Pitt. It's difficult to get the 'message' of the movie. Usually, the cops are shown covering up for one another. So, here, the logical thing to have expected was that the chopper crew saw Spacey lunge for the weapon, with Freeman backing them up on that. Instead, they haul Pitt away. If the 'message' was don't let emotion overcome you, again, in most films the cops are shown covering. So - blam! - dead serial killer . . Pitt gets a trophy, roll credits. At least Freeman might have mentioned temporary insanity - the supposed defense in Gothika where such also wasn't mentioned.