Thirty years have gone by already since David Fincher unleashed his masterful beast of a thriller and reinvigorated his feature career (Alien 3 did not go well for him, and he returned to commercials for a time), cemented Brad Pitt as a megastar, made household names of Gwyneth Paltrow and Kevin Spacey, and started writer Andrew Kevin Walker’s sterling career in Hollywood…

. . . and now Warner Home Video celebrates the crime thriller's 30th anniversary on Ultra HD with reference-quality 4K video, an excellent DTS-HD MA track and most of the same supplements as before.  It’s time to get those seven deadly sins taken care of.

Set in an oppressive unnamed city, Se7en depicts the handover of one worn down detective’s (Morgan Freeman) desk to a brasher, younger one (Pitt). Within hours of their meeting a case emerges that will change them both forever: a serial murderer (Kevin Spacey) begins a ghastly attack upon targeted citizens from all walks of life; attacks intended to represent The Seven Deadly Sins. As both men try to navigate the case, understanding each other and the nature of why they - and the killer - do what they do, it becomes painfully obvious their suspect has the upper hand.

This is a first class entertainment ticket all the way. The story is perfection: a seamless combination of morality exploration and thriller. Through these vivid characters, you are thrust into a world that challenges your every perception, while, at the same time, you are taken on a tension-filled hunt that excites, confuses, and ultimately punches you right in the gut (courtesy of one of the best endings in movie history). This film never preaches; its pitch-perfect characterizations draw you into the characters’ plight, making you empathize with both leads from the outset, despite their disparate natures, and feel everything they feel right up to the big reveal. It is storytelling at its best, and an extremely rare event.

Pitt was never better than in this film. Hot off Interview with the Vampire and Legends of the Fall, he had become the newest pin up idol. Within two minutes of inhabiting Mills on screen, he proved himself to be much more than that: his fame and rise to superstardom was well justified after this film. Morgan Freeman, already a critical darling and seasoned professional, is but one of many jewels in this film’s crown. His character ended up becoming something of a new archetype for movie cops: an introspective ‘brain’. You think of all the films and TV shows in the last decade that possess characters such as Sommerset—they owe Freeman and Se7en a debt. But by far this reviewer’s favourite actor in the flick is its villain: John Doe himself, Kevin Spacey, gives one of the most understated, chilling performances in the history of bad guys. Anthony Hopkins is the master of presence, as far as cinematic psychos go, but Spacey takes the gong for master of mind-fucking. His icy facade as he lures his targeted policemen to his endgame has become a thing of legend. It is Spacey above all others in this film that allows the shock ending to deliver its punch with such effect. If not for his nuanced and underplayed menace, some savvy folk may well have telegraphed what was to come (and I never believe people who say they did!).

Fincher solidified to all what was plain to see, even in the less than warmly received Alien 3—he was a gift to cinema. His ability to build tension, to visually invoke each character so effortlessly, and to lead a stellar cast to glory is in every frame. There isn’t a second of this film you aren’t completely immersed in. This is Walker’s story, but it's Fincher’s world: an oppressive, evocative place that lures you, holds you, and keeps you until it's ready to let you go. Not bad for a filmmaker’s sophomore outing.

Se7en was/is one of those rare gems that comes out of nowhere and stays with you long after the lights go up. It’s a monster out to get you, and get you it does. It is also accurately, and not in that meaningless Hollywood fluff descriptive way, a masterpiece: one of the select few where every cook who adds to this broth delivers perfection.

DigiPack / Seven 4K / 4K Ultra HD + Digital 4K

Home Video Distributor: Warner Bros.
Available on Blu-ray - January 7, 2025
Screen Formats: 2.39:1
Subtitles: English SDH; French; German SDH; Japanese; Spanish; Czech; Danish; Finnish; Korean; Mandarin (Traditional); Norwegian; Swedish
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; French (Canada); Dolby Digital 2.0; French: Dolby Digital 5.1; German: Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1; Spanish: Dolby Digital 2.0; Czech: Dolby Digital 2.0; Japanese: Dolby Digital 2.0
Discs: 4K Ultra HD; single-disc set
Region Encoding: 4K region-free

Nothing wrong with a man taking pleasure in his work. I won't deny my own personal desire to turn each sin against the sinner." Gluttony, greed, sloth, envy, wrath, pride, lust — everyone has a sin. For detectives William Somerset and David Mills they live among these sins, every day, a crumbling city of crime all around them. But nothing can prepare the partners for the killings they are about to experience, all of which begins when they find a morbidly obese man who has died from the forced ingestion of spaghetti. What starts as one bizarre crime turns into a case of serial murders as a predator named John Doe begins to execute victims by paying homage to the "deadly sin" they represent.

VIDEO

For some strange reason, the 7.1 audio has been ditched for this release, in its place is an excellent DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack which creates the atmosphere in its absence.

AUDIO

Here’s where the reuse begins. This is not to say the DTS-HD 5.1 isn’t a beautiful surround experience. It truly is. But I would have liked to see a new 7.1 ATMOS mix. I think this is a great mix, but if they were going to the trouble of a definitive remaster, the soundtrack deserved the video’s attention to detail as well.

Supplements:

Commentary:

• Audio Commentary #1 – with Fincher, Pitt and Freeman

• Audio Commentary #2 – with Fincher, Walker, Richard Dyer, Richard Francis-Bruce and Michael De Luca

• Audio Commentary #3 – with Fincher, Francis-Bruce, Dyer, Khondji and Arthur Max

• Audio Commentary #4 – with Fincher, Dyer, Klyce and Shore

Special Features:

• Deleted scenes – including option to watch with Fincher commentary
• Alternate ending – includes option to watch with Fincher commentary
• Production design
• Still photographs
• Theatrical EPK
• Mastering for Home Theater
• Exploration of the opening sequence

	Movie
	Video
	Audio
	Extras
Composite Blu-ray Grade

MPAA Rating: R.
Runtime: 127 mins
Director: David Fincher
Writer: Andrew Kevin Walker
Cast: Morgan Freeman; Brad Pitt; Kevin Spacey
Genre: Drama | Thriller
Tagline: Seven Deadly sins. Seven Ways to Die.
Memorable Movie Quote: "What's in the box"
Theatrical Distributor: New Line Cinema
Official Site:
Release Date: September 22, 1995
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: January 7, 2025.
Synopsis: Two detectives, a rookie and a veteran, hunt a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as his motives.