With my "Fight Club" blog as my last entry, I decided to keep the Fincher-theme going and make what very well could be my last blog an entry on "SE7EN," a film that, without exaggerating, is one of the greatest films you will ever see, whether or not you're a horror fan.
This 1995 thriller sees a serial killer who cryptically calls himself John Doe take inspiration from the Seven Deadly Sins: Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Lust, Pride, Envy, and Wrath. In thinking about what piece of cinema I could possibly call my favorite, I had a hell of a time, but finally came upon one scene (minor spoilers contained herein.)
I was also conflicted when it comes to revealing who plays Doe himself. While it's not exactly a secret, and if you really wanted to, you could find out yourself, I think the impact of the revelation would be tremendous if you didn't already know who the actor was. It is this actor's unparalelled skills that truly make this scene.
Following John Doe's fifth murder (that of pride, in which he slices off a model's nose..."to spite her face," as the old saying goes), he enters the police station and reveals himself to Detectives Mills & Somerset (Brad Pitt & Morgan Freeman, respectively.) Through his attorney, he then reveals that there are two extra bodies buried in the desert, and should Mills & Somerset accompany him to find those bodies, he will plead guilty to every murder he has committed.
What follows is most definitely one of the most compelling scenes in cinema, and it all takes place in a simple police car. From behind the mesh divider, Doe explains the reasoning behind his actions at length, defining it as a sort of "cleansing" process, when what he's done is written off as just "killing innocent people." "Innocent? Is that supposed to be funny?", snaps Doe at a smug Detective Mills.
I wouldn't want to risk diminishing the impact of the speech, so I won't transcribe it here word for word. I recommend buying "SE7EN," if you don't own it already, or at least renting it from your local video store, and witnessing great writing, directing, and acting coming together in a disturbing, yet unimaginably impressive picture.
Well, Inscapers...it's been fun. Not much more to say.
Stay classy, Riverside.
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