Seven

From David Fincher, Se7en is a compelling and brilliant postmodern film noir. It is grim and disturbing but it is also very intelligent and daring. What I did love about Se7en especially is that it is incredibly stylish, beautiful dark cinematography and dazzling landscapes really do add to the atmosphere. Very little of the murders are shown but we are appalled and shocked by what we hear of them, the action is tense and the climax is shattering. There is also an intelligent screenplay, a clever plot telling of a vicious serial killer who murders his victims in a gruesome way to atone for the sins(gluttony, greed, sloth, lust, pride, envy and wrath)he deems them to have committed and excellent direction. The acting is also superb, Morgan Freeman gives another brilliant performance as the disillusioned detective and Brad Pitt is great as Mills in a more meatier role than he has ever done. Gwyneth Paltrow makes a small yet significant appearance as Mill's uneasy wife, while Kevin Spacey superbly delivers equally superb dialogue as John Doe despite the fact he isn't in the film much. Overall, a brilliant film, with adept performances, direction, style and ambition. 10/10 Bethany Cox

After his calamitous experience working on his début film Alien 3 (1992), David Fincher took on a small genre picture that, little did he know, would revitalise his career and become one of the greatest films of the 1990's. Se7en appears to begin as your typical detective neo- noir, with the cynical veteran and the naive rookie taking on an elusive serial killer seemed hell-bent on turning the sin against the sinner. But, set in an unnamed and permanently drizzly American city, Se7en is a meditation on evil and a pessimist's depiction on the modern world, climaxing in one of the bravest and most memorable endings in Hollywood history.

Detective Somerset (Morgan Freeman) is on the verge of retirement, where he plans to leave his inner-city life behind him after years of fighting on the side of good. His replacement is the brash Detective Mills (Brad Pitt), an optimistic young recruit eager to learn, who Somerset takes under his wing. Their first homicide investigation involves an obese man who has been fed at gunpoint to the point of causing his stomach to rupture. With Somerset ready to leave the force, Mills takes on his first solo case in the murder of a rich attorney, a man forced to cut a pound of flesh from his own body. The murder scene has the words 'greed' written in blood. Somerset eventually finds the word 'gluttony' etched in grease in the apartment of the first victim, and he becomes convinced the murders are connected, and that the killer is murdering under the guidance of the seven deadly sins.

The genius of Se7en is rooted in the way the movie keeps the audience as clueless as the detectives. Normally in genre pictures such as this, we either know who the killer is and eagerly wait for the investigators to put the pieces together, or we have a line-up of suspects and red herrings to decide from. Here, apart from brief glimpses during a thrilling chase scene, we are devoid of clues. The killer is always one step ahead of Somerset and Mills, alluding to the idea that the mysterious 'John Doe' is indeed having his work guided by a higher power. Of course, he is not, he is merely a man, but this helps gives Se7en dramatic weight, rather than it becoming a nihilistic exercise in cruelty.

When, three-quarters of the movie in, the killer hands himself in, the movie becomes a masterclass in writing, slowly building into one of the greatest climaxes in film. Somerset, a decent man who has devoted his life to the side of good but has had the fight slowly drained out of him, meets his nemesis in John Doe (Kevin Spacey). But as they talk, Doe's reasoning becomes clear and, shockingly, almost sympathetic. "Wanting people to listen, you can't just tap them on the shoulder anymore, you have to hit them with a sledgehammer," he says. It's about a world gone to s**t, a view shared by Mills' wife Tracy (Gwyneth Paltrow), who talks to Somerset in a diner about allowing a baby to be born into the world after discovering she is pregnant. Cerebral and Gothic, Se7en transcends the genre on so many levels thanks to some bleak yet stylish direction by Fincher, and it still manages to astound after almost 20 years of repeat viewings.

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Detective Lt. William Somerset (Morgan Freeman) is about to retire. He is teamed up with a young new detective David Mills (Brad Pitt). Together they try to find a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as his M.O. Meanwhile Mills' wife Tracy (Gwyneth Paltrow) fears for her husband's life and is very depressed.

Dark and depressing but just fascinating. Director David Fincher shots the entire film in dim light and shoves the victims mutilated bodies in our face. The grimness of the tone wears you down but that's appropriate considering the subject matter. No humor either. It all leads to a truly harrowing ending. There was supposed to be a happy ending but they (wisely) chose not to do it. Freeman and Pitt work very well together and both give excellent performances. I even thought Paltrow (who I hate) was good! Kevin Spacey is very good too in a small role.

If you have trouble with blood, gore and disturbing subject matter stay far away from this movie. But if you can handle that, watch this one. It's depressing and unpleasant but riveting.

David Fincher's bleak, relentless, and ultimately terrifying crime thriller Seven transcends other films of the genre with incredible plotting (the sort Hitchcock might employ were he alive and making films in the 1990s) and scalding intelligence. With only a small handful of minor flaws -- the overly familiar retiring cop/young cop pairing; the awful "I'm taking you off the case!" cliche seemingly required by the genre; one giant lapse in logic in the downward spiral toward the conclusion that cannot be revealed without ruining the script's gruesome surprise -- Seven typically keeps its viewers imprisoned in their seats with a combination of morbid fascination and abject fear. Despite attempts by studio executives to alter Andrew Kevin Walker's ending, the filmmaking team prevailed and audiences experienced that rare treat of mainstream cinema: an uncompromising vision.

Gothic, shocking, suspenseful, disturbing and clever, `Seven' marked a new beginning for director David Fincher's career. This dark tale of murder and crime revolves around two detectives in present New York city played by two brilliant actors `Brad Pitt' and `Morgan Freeman' who are paired together to solve a puzzle of murder that is at the hands of a man who kills regarding to the seven deadly sins. Both actors displayed striking performances that are so sharp and realistic sometimes you have to remind yourself that's its all acting.

David Fincher's masterpiece really gives us an opportunity of a lifetime, maybe it's one that we don't all wish to share, but by seeing this movie you will experience a glimpse of the horrors that this world is filled with, and a small piece of mind of a man who you only prey you never have to meet.

Brad Pitt successfully proves to us that he's not just a pretty face on screen, and that he sinks into his character so well, that you can walk off after the film finishes classifying him as a pretty darn good actor.

You wouldn't expect anything else from Morgan Freeman because it's perfectly obvious that this guy was born to play the roles of the smart detective.

David Fincher's timeless directing and memorable filming captures all the goods that this film has to offer and will undoubtedly leave you shocked and begging for more films like this. Seven is a step into the harsh realities of life, a realistic portrayal of two detectives investigation into the un-describable horrific world murder, and the darkest realms of the human soul.

We can only prey for more classic memorable work from Mr. Fincher and for those future directors who are intent on making a gothic, psychological thriller, make sure you sit down and watch Seven with a pen and paper ready to take notes.