Se7en
Short description
Two homicide detectives in an unnamed, perpetually rain-soaked city are paired on a case that grows steadily worse. William Somerset, a veteran nearing retirement, is careful and methodical; David Mills, his new partner, is impatient and sure of himself. Together they investigate a series of murders in which each victim is made to embody one of the seven deadly sins, and it becomes clear the killer is working through the list in order.
The film was directed by David Fincher, the second of the thirteen features he has directed, following Alien³ and preceding The Game, from a screenplay by Andrew Kevin Walker. Morgan Freeman plays Somerset, Brad Pitt plays Mills, and Gwyneth Paltrow appears as Tracy. The production, backed by New Line Cinema and others, cost about 33 million dollars and took roughly 327 million worldwide, a strong return that established Fincher as a director of grim, precisely controlled thrillers.
Audiences rate the film highly: on IMDb it holds 8.6/10 from around two million votes, and on TMDB 8.4/10 from roughly twenty-four thousand. A critics' score of 7.9/10 from 156 reviews places it close to those figures, suggesting broad agreement rather than a sharp divide. The film runs 127 minutes.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film's credits roll from top to bottom, rather than the usual bottom to top.
- The role of John Doe could have gone to Michael Stipe, the leader of the band “R.E.M.”
- The opening credits feature a remix of the song Closer, created by Nine Inch Nails.
- Producers expected Kevin Spacey's name to be among the first to appear in the opening credits, but the actor himself asked not to mention him at the beginning of the film so that it would be more difficult for viewers to identify the killer. Presumably as compensation for this sacrifice, Spacey’s name was placed first in the end credits.
- The phrase spoken by the Police Chief to Detective Somerset at the very end – "Where are you going to be?" – to which Somerset replies, "Around... I'll be around..." – is a reference to another film by Fincher, "Alien 3", where Ripley says the exact same phrase to Dillon, receiving the exact same response.
- The character Kevin Spacey plays is named John Doe – this is a name used in Anglo-Saxon courts in cases of anonymity of the plaintiff, or when he is simply unknown. It is also used in the case of an unidentified corpse or a patient whose identity has not been established.
- The word fuck and its derivatives appear 74 times in the film, mostly uttered by the character played by Brad Pitt.
- During the filming of the chase scene with John Doe, Brad Pitt fell awkwardly and injured his arm on a car windshield. Following the incident, the filmmakers decided to reflect this in the script and changed some details.
- An early version of the script referenced Mills’ partner named Parsons. He was killed during a police raid. But the filmmakers decided to abandon this plotline and removed all mentions of Parsons from the script even before filming began.
- Screenwriter Andrew Kevin Walker worked on the script for about two years. In addition, Andrew played an extra role – he became the first corpse shown in the film.
- The old photo depicting a woman is a poster for the Soviet film "Pyshka" (1934) by Mikhail Romm.
- The victim tied to the bed is not a computer-generated effect. A very thin actor was selected for the filming of this scene. However, the makeup artists also didn't waste their time, and after working on the actor, they really managed to create the impression of a genuine "living" corpse.
- Denzel Washington turned down the role of Detective David Mills.
- Somerset's revolver is a Smith & Wesson Model 15.
- Early versions of the script featured a strange, gnome-like woman who was part of the investigation team. After each murder, she would go to the crime scene, swear profusely, and make biting jokes at the expense of Somerset and Mills.
- David Cronenberg was offered to direct the film, but he declined.
- In the opening shots of the film, all house numbers begin with the digit 7.
- In the film's trailer, the voice of the phone subscriber with whom the detectives speak in apartment #604 belongs to the film's director, David Fincher.
- Detective Somerset, in order to understand the motives of John Doe's murders, studies Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales" and John Milton's "Paradise Lost" at the library. William Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice" and Dante Alighieri's "Divine Comedy" are also mentioned in the film.
- Somerset's metronome ticks seven times during the first scene of the film.
- On the prison uniform worn by John Doe at the end of the film is written the name of the prison – “Bardach County Jail”. This is a subtle nod to the film’s costume designer – Eleanor Bardach.
- All of John Doe’s books are genuine, written specifically for the film. About two months and $15,000 were spent on their creation.
- Morgan Freeman's son, Alfonso, appeared in an extra role as a fingerprint technician.
- The production team at "New Line Cinema" was reluctant to start filming due to its ending. A number of alternative endings were discussed (at least five), but Brad Pitt had the final say – he refused to participate in the filming if the ending was changed.
- During filming, Morgan Freeman would draw his pistol from its holster, keeping his finger on the trigger. Police officers present on set as technical experts quickly corrected the actor, pointing out his mistake.
- Mills' pistol is a customized Springfield Armory M1911 A1.
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