Se7en Analysis

The beginning of David Fincher's psychological thriller se7en (1995)  starts off with Detective Lieutenant William Somerset, played by Morgan Freeman, in his house. He is dressed smartly and is placing everything in a specific order. This shows that he takes pride in his appearance and he is an important person. It also gives off a sense of OCD and suggests that everything he does is methodical and has to be done in a specific way. The items in shot were not cheap items, this suggests that he has money and maybe his job as a Detective is well paid.

54 seconds into the film and a dead body is shown. The lighting in the scene just shows the body and some of the light reflects off the pool of blood surrounding him. The is not conventional because we haven’t learned anything about from the actors and who is the protagonist. This body creates a mystery and the fact that the body has a chunk of his head missing suggests it was just a normal murder.
Detective Lieutenant Somerset is a caring person. This is shown when he sees family pictures on the wall whereas the other actor doesn’t care.

The scene progresses and the second protagonist is introduced. Detective David Mills played by Brad Pitt. As he enters the shot he looks chilled, chewing gum with his mouth open suggesting that he has little manners. His shirt looks mucky and isn’t ironed.  He is also unshaven which suggests he doesn’t take much pride in his appearance.

As both of the protagonists move outside, the weather is dismal. This is conventional because it makes the setting seem glum and dark. The camera is then aimed up at them to suggest dominance and to show that they’re above the general public because of their jobs.  When speech is exchanged between them, Detective Lieutenant Somerset makes it clear that he needs to listen and act like a Detective and not mistake arrogance for confidence. Detective Mils backchats and uses humour. Detective Lieutenant Somerset doesn’t like this which suggests he is the more experienced detective and wants Detective Mills to listen and not backchat.

Detective Lieutenant then states that he has 7 days left before he leaves, which could link to the title of the film.

The opening titles start with a book. The music is very screechy, fast paced and uncomfortable. They’re very graphic and suggest to the audience that it could be a crime journal of cases that have been investigated. The shot then cuts to a man changing his finger prints. The music gets faster and faster and more graphic images come up.

After the opening titles, it states that the day is Monday. This suggests that the length of the film will cover the week. Monday to Sunday.

It then cuts to Detective Mills in bed with his wife. The puts on a crumpled shirt with the tie already round his neck. This suggests that he is lazy and unprepared. He quickly answers the phone to avoid his wife waking up which shows that he cares about her. The scene progresses to outside and shows Detective Mills holding 2 coffees. The weather is dismal and is still raining. Detective Lieutenant Somerset arrives and is very blunt. He doesn’t accept the coffee and doesn’t even say hello to his partner. This suggests that he just wants to get into the scene and keep his mind clear.

The shot is filmed in a rough area with lots of fences giving a sense of loneliness and not wealthy. The police officers in the shot are very dismissive and blunt. This could suggest that the upcoming scene is horrific and they’re disgusted by what they’ve seen. As they walk to the scene, the camera tracks them as they walk and Detective Lieutenant Somerset is in front of Detective Mills which gives off a sense of authority.

In the scene there are no lights which could disorient the audience because they can only see what the flashlight sees.
When the light shows the body, insects crawl all over the shot which could suggest that he has been there for some time. The dead body is huge and has died whilst eating. In the 7 deadly sins, the first sin is Gluttony (Greed) which could be why this murder takes place. This then also is just like the title, seven.

As the scene goes on, tension is built when Detective Lieutenant Somerset looks down. There is a delay between the camera cutting to what he is looking at which builds tension. He is looking at rope tied round the victims feet which could suggest murder.

Tension is then carried on when Detective Lieutenant Somerset asks Detective Mills to be quiet and then tells him to go and do a police officer’s job; ask the neighbours about the crime. This is demoralising to Detective Mills and embarrassing.