5) Se7en (1995)
The 90s were undoubtedly an era for ushering in game-changing psychological thrillers. An encapsulation by the one and only Sir Anthony Hopkins in 1991’s The Silence Of The Lambs gave us one of the most frightening villains of all time in Dr Hannibal Lecter. Following on from this came John Doe, a villain brought to life by the multi-talented Kevin Spacey in what could only be described as the most grisly and uneasy thriller ever conceived.
Se7en focuses on two homicide detectives hot on the trail of a serial killer who despatches his victims in the vein of the seven deadly sins. It’s not the graphic violence that made me turn this one off, it was the atmosphere (and maybe the fact that I was only sixteen years old). The old saying that “less is more” really applies here, and it is what truly makes this a film that will absolutely send chills down your spine.
David Fincher’s masterful direction created a world that I hope to live my entire existence without ever being a part of. We are forced to follow detective Mills and Somerset on the unenvious task of tracking John Doe, and along the way, evil in its purest form is witnessed. No punches are pulled here, the introduction itself illustrates very clearly to the audience exactly what kind of a ride they’re about to be taken on.
In one of the most creative and effective intro sequences I’ve ever seen, the eerie images of John Doe working on his journal and peeling skin off of his fingers is montaged over a remix of the Nine Inch Nails track Closer. I don’t know about you, but the song itself is enough to make me uneasy, let alone having to watch those images at the same time.
Pure brilliance.