Se7en (1995)
Like Fight Club, Se7en is directed by David Fincher and widely regarded as one of the most intense roles of Pitt’s career.
The story: a week outside of retirement, Detective Somerset (terrific Morgan Freeman) is ready to step away from police work.
As he’s showing young Detective Mills (Pitt) the ropes as he prepares to escape the chaos, he’s given a unique case as a parting gift: a serial murderer is utilizing the seven deadly sins as a theme in his killings. The murders in the film represent the seven deadly sins as defined by Christianity: gluttony, greed, sloth, lust, pride, envy, and wrath.
The slayings are particularly grisly. The first victim portrays gluttony: an obese man is force-fed literally to death via hemorrhage.
It’s a twisted, haunting film, way above your typical serial killer flick.
Pitt’s performance is powerful in Se7en, notably in the film’s final act, when the killer John Doe (Kevin Spacey, appropriately creepy) leads the detectives into the desert. They locate a cardboard box with nefarious content, resulting in Pitt’s famed scream, “What’s in the box!?!?”
It’s an unforgettable line, followed by a disturbing i mage that lingers in memory long after the movie is over!
Denzel Washington was originally offered the part of Detective Mills, and later regretted turning it down.
Two months of work and $15,000 were devoted to creating authentic, fully realized journals for John Doe’s apartment.
The actors playing the SWAT officers weren’t told that Sloth was played by a live actor, which heightened their scared reactions.
