Urban decay has never been so slickly photographed.

Rating: 8/10 (19 December 2014)

Se7en is one of those films you watch in between long intervals. For me, this was my third rewatch and my last. I don't think I have the stomach for another.
It is essentially a buddy cop flick, but the script touches on deeper issues of the future of human society, sin, apathy, and predestination. The Noir trappings are beautiful to behold, the constant rain, squalor, grimy city that feels like every dystopian metropolis combined into one. But it occasionally veers into fantasy with a plot that relies on a few too many gimmicks to make it flawless. The villain is simply an omnipotent being at times with almost magic powers.
There are moments of genuine humanity that doesn't make it completely hopeless, but the atmosphere is filled with so much despair and nihilism that the grunge attitude of it does begin to wear as the clock ticks by. And by the time the villain of the piece makes his grand entry, I kept expecting him to appear with a leather mask on his face and gloating evilly about eating a census taker's liver with fava beans and a nice Chianti.
Still, the dynamic between Freeman and Pitt is still enticing to watch, and the story works as a parable or even sadistic fable at a rudimentary level. But sometimes I wish the story hadn't been so manipulative and fixed just so that it could punish these characters and push them to insane lengths. I felt like character motivations and development were being engaged at the behest of the plot progression, so certain events begin to seem contrived just so it can reach the shocking conclusion. I assume the writer was trying to teach a lesson, albeit in a clumsy fashion.
I would call it a minor 90s classic, and the dreamlike, twilight zone-esque environment adds a nice surreal atmosphere. For those willing to ignore plot conveniences and the dingy weather, this film will take you along for a horrific trip into the darkest recesses of what men are capable of.