TEXTUAL ANALYSIS OF SE7EN (1995)

EDITINGA CUT AWAY IS USED FROM ONE SCENE TO THE NEXT, FROM SOMERSET TO THE

METRONOME, IT’S ALMOST AS IF THE METRONOME IS MOCKING HIM AND IS

COUNTING DOWN THE TIME HE HAS LEFT. THIS SUGGESTS TO THE AUDIENCE THAT A

KILLER IS LOOSE AND TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE TO CATCH THEM.

THE EDITING IN THE TITLE SEQUENCE IS VERY CLEVER AND PRECISE. MAYBE TO

REPRESENT THE INNER WORKINGS OF THE KILLERS MIND. THE TYPOGRAPHY USED IS

VERY BLURRY BUT STILL CLEAR TO READ, THIS IMMEDIATELY CREATES A FEELING OF

UNCERTAINTY AND DISCOMFORT.

THE TITLE SEQUENCE IS IN A MONTAGE FORMAT HOWEVER IT’S NOT DONE IN

CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, THIS SUGGESTS THAT THE KILLER IS DOING MANY DIFFERENT

THINGS IN ORDER TO CREATE SOME SORT OF FILE OR DOCUMENT.

THERE ARE VARIOUS TRANSITIONS USED IN THE OPENING SEQUENCE, SOME ARE

STRAIGHT CUTS, SOME CROSS FADE AND SOME FADE TO BLACK. THIS SUGGESTS THE

IDEA THAT THE CLIPS ARE LINKED TOGETHER AND GIVES AN EERIE FEEL, THE FADE TO

BLACK REPRESENTS THE SINCERITY AND DARK NATURE OF THE FILM.

SOUNDWITHIN THE CLIP THE BACKGROUND NOISES SUCH AS POLICE SIRENS WHICH CREATE

THOUGHTS WITHIN THE AUDIENCE THAT SOMETHING HAS ALREADY GONE WRONG.

AS WELL AS RAIN DROPS WHICH CREATE A DEPRESSED AND DISTURBING TONE. IT

SUGGESTS THAT THE REST OF THE FILM WILL HAVE AN EERIE EDGE TO IT.

AS THE MUSIC THROUGHPUT THE TITLE SEQUENCE SAYS ‘GOD’, THE KILLER IS SHOWN

CUTTING OUT THE WORD GOD FROM A PIECE OF LITERATURE TEXT. IT’S IN SYNC, THIS

COULD SHOW THE CHARACTER IS RELIGIOUS AND HAS STRONG VIEWS/OPINIONS ON

ANYTHING RELATED TO RELIGION OR ‘GOD’.

THE SOUNDTRACK TO THE TITLE SEQUENCE SOUNDS LIKE HIGH PITCHED ELECTRICAL

SURGES. THIS COULD BE CONSIDERED TO BE QUITE DISCOMFORTING AND

DISTURBING BY THE AUDIENCE. THE DISTURBING NATURE OF THE SOUND OF

ELECTRICAL SURGES COULD SHOW THE DISTURBED, PSYCHOTIC BUT INCREDIBLY

INTELLIGENT MIND OF THE KILLER. IT CAN ALSO REPRESENT THE FACT THAT THE KILLER

MAY HAVE A CONFLICTING MIND AND IS COMPLETELY DISTURBED IN TERMS OF HIS

MENTALITY, THIS IS BECAUSE THE ACTUAL MUSIC IS DISJOINTED. THERE'S NO REAL

TUNE TO IT, IT’S RATHER EERIE AND IT BUILDS UP TENSION WITHIN THE AUDIENCE.

MISE-EN-SCENEIN THE TITLE SEQUENCE THE KILLER, JOHN DOE (KEVINSPACEY) IS EXTREMELY PRECISE IN EVERY MOVEMENT HEMAKES AND THE TASKS HE IS DOING. EVERYTHING HE ISDOING IS VERY PRECISE AND ARTICULATE, HE SEWS PAGESTOGETHER AND USES NEEDLES TO THREAD STRING, THISSHOWS HIS ‘PSYCHOTIC’ ATTENTION TO DETAIL.

ALL OF THE OBJECTS BEING USED ARE SHOWN EXTREMELYCLOSE UP AND TAKE UP MOST OF THE SCREEN. THISCREATES SUSPENSE AS THE AUDIENCE CAN’T SEE WHO IT ISTHAT’S DOING IT OR WHERE THEY ARE.

IN THE TITLE SEQUENCE YOU CAN SEE THAT THE KILLERHIGHLIGHTS AND CROSSES OUT CERTAIN WORDS ANDPHRASES. THE MOST SIGNIFICANT WORDS HE CROSSES OUTARE ‘PREGNANT’, ‘INTERCOURSE’ AND ‘TRANSSEXUAL’. LATER ON IN THE TITLE WE SEE THE HIM CUT OUT THE WORDGOD. THIS SUGGESTS TO THE AUDIENCE THAT THE KILLER ISA RELIGIOUS CHARACTER AND HAS A HATRED FORANYTHING THAT GOES AGAINST GOD. SUCH AS THE‘SEVEN’ SINS. (GREED, ENVY, LUST, SLOTH, GLUTTONY, PRIDE AND WRATH)

CAMERA ANGLES/SHOTSTHE LOW ANGLED TRACKING SHOT USED SHOWS CHARACTERISTICS OF BOTH OF THE CHARACTERS. MILLS

(BRAD PITT) IS SHOWN BARGING INTO PEOPLE, THIS GIVES OFF THE IMPRESSION THAT HE IS NEW TO THE CITY

AND UNAWARE OF HIS SURROUNDING. HE IS ALSO PRESENTED AS BEING QUITE ARROGANT AND SELF

INVOLVED, HE CONSTANTLY INTERRUPTS SOMERSET (MORGAN FREEMAN) WHEN HE IS TRYING TO MAKE HIM

WELCOME TO THE CITY AND TRIES TO HELP HIM. SOMERSET ISN’T EVEN LOOKING AT PEOPLE AROUND HIM

BUT STILL MANAGES TO DODGE THEM OR SIDE STEP THEM, THIS SUGGESTS THAT HE IS WISE AND

KNOWLEDGEABLE.

A WIDE SHOT IS USED TO SHOWS SOMERSET'S APARTMENT AND ALL HIS POSSESSIONS. WHEN YOU LOOK

CLOSELY YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE THAT HE HOLDS LITTLE TO NO PERSONAL POSSESSIONS OR ITEMS OF

VALUE, OR THEY ARE NOT PRESENTED FOR THE AUDIENCE TO SEE. THIS SUGGESTS THAT SOMERSET IS PRIVATE

AND SECRETIVE. YOU COULD ALSO SAY THAT SOMERSET FEELS LIKE HE DOESN’T NEED MANY POSSESSIONS ,

LIKE THEY ARE NOT REALLY RELEVANT TO HIM. THE APARTMENT WALLS AND KITCHEN UNITS ARE WHITE AND

HAVE A MODERN LOOK. THIS MAKES SOMERSET SEEM WEALTHY AND ORGANISED. THE CRISPNESS OF THE

WHITE COULD SHOW SOLITUDE AND CONTENT IN THE WAY HE LIVES HIS LIFE. IT GIVES OFF THE IMPRESSION

THAT HE’S QUITE A LONER.