After a little over 2 hours of gripping drama, I must say that though 14 years old, the plot is solid. The gruesome and mastermind murders are graphically depicted in a dark film noir sorta style. The city has a similarly murky mood of corruption. The detailed crime scene investigation employed by the detectives, particularly Somerset led me to believe that several modern day successes perhaps have their roots in Seven. Aside from the hit TV serial CSI, even the Saw movies I believe are inspired by Seven. As the narrative unfolds, expect to be intrigued and glued to your seat. There are several memorable scenes, punctuated by intricate new revelations, outdoing those before them. If all facets of a movie are directly relational to the directors efforts, then David Fincher has achieved perfection with this masterpiece.
Detective Lt. William Somerset played by Morgan Freeman was possibly one of the best character portrayals of all time. In addition to the script being strong, and the character matrix being complex, Freeman’s delivery is flawless. His portrayal of the veteran cop, calm and collected in his ways, and somewhat of a recluse, was faultless to the point that from time to time I had to remind myself that it was a character being played by another actor. The dinner scene at Mills residence being a striking example; genuine hilarity depicted in its truest raw form. Detective David Mills played by Brad Pitt was also quite good. The young yet moderately well accomplished cop who’s rather edgy and quick to throw the punches. With contrasting character sets, Somerset and Mills make an unlikely but perfectly balanced team. Gwyneth Paltrow as Tracy Mills was again very well cast. Though her role was limited in comparison to that of the male leads, the little she did, she did very well. The soft natured wife, having trouble settling into the city, with no friends, no work, and the platonic connection with her husband’s police partner, was original and believable.
The DVD I was watching was as always a US Region 1 release. Video quality was good for most part, though there were some signs of grain at times. This is probably owing to the dated DVD transfer. With constant improvements in technology nowadays and HD content everyone is accustomed to transfers that are crystal clear. In keeping with the theme of the movie a shadowy tone might have been added during post processing. The soundtrack was DTS ES 5.1 and was brilliant; dialogue delivery was clear, and the ambience of the cityscape in various scenes were balanced and realistic. Gun shots had impact, and emphasis was added to scenes by means of priority given to certain sounds; for example the tick tock of Somerset’s clock. The score was good, and did its bit in the overall scheme of things, and especially in the moments of suspense upsurge.
My Recommendation: Kick Ass (One of the all time best Crime, Mystery, Thrillers)
No comments:
Post a Comment