Why So Blu?

Se7en (30th Anniversary 4K UHD Blu-ray Review)

One can never fault David Fincher for not having a style.  His films are full of images that are dense with detail. The stories are always different.  Fincher never tells the same kind of story, and I love his work for that very reason.  When Se7en was released in 1995, the grisly thriller was a huge success universally and spawned a style that people still try to replicate 30 years later.  Now, we get the long awaited 4K UHD Blu-ray release of Se7en, and of course, we want to know, “what’s in the box?”

 

Film

*This review contains spoilers, naturally.

 

We meet David Mills (Brad Pitt) as he’s joining a new police force as a detective. He is shadowing William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), a veteran long awaiting his retirement.  Mills is hungry and excited to go and catch bad guys loud and proud.  Somerset is contemplative and intelligent, doing a lot of research to find his clues and solve his cases.

The city, unnamed and receiving monsoons worth of rain, is a backdrop for a killer who is claiming victims based on the seven deadly sins.  The first sin that Mills and Somerset discover is Gluttony, which has been depicted by a man so overfed that his distended stomach has exploded inside his body, killing him. The gruesome scene has no DNA evidence beyond the victim and the filth left behind from them.

Mills and Somerset clash.  Somerset is finished with this life and is tired of witnessing so much ugliness as a homicide detective.  Mills is young and ready for anything.  He’s uprooted his wife (Gwyneth Paltrow) and dogs from “upstate” to the city to live in a vibrating apartment.  Mills and Somerset’s different personalities would seem to be what bring them down as partners, but as Somerset’s days begin to wind down, the clues begin to come full speed ahead.  A second murder, this time for Greed, gives clues that lead to The Canterbury Tales among other literature.

When the time comes for Somerset to retire, he decides to stay on, but mostly as he says, to observe.  The whole time, Somerset and Mills begin to bond, first over dinner and then over their research.  They can put their heads together and get very productive.  When murders representing Lust and Sloth come, these more gruesome and shocking than the ones before them, the two become angry as the killer begins to toy with their sensibilities.

The film is of course one that has a big reveal that now 30 years on, I’d hope people know about, but in case you’ve missed this film somehow, I will say, the next sentences will contain spoilers, so, feel free to skip ahead to the technical section… OK, back to that big reveal: John Doe. Mills and Somerset’s research and connections lead them to a John Doe, who they chase to his arrest.  As they question him, the detectives learn that John Doe, even incarcerated has the upper hand, and somehow has committed his final murders to finish out his 7 sins. The ending is one that is not only powerful, but twisty and shocking in equal measure.

David Fincher bathes Se7en in dread. From the constant drenching rain to the dim lighting, to the harrowing Howard Shore score, all the elements give the film a constant sense of creep. Each murder scene is gruesome and dense with detail.  The kills are as inventive as anything that came in the film Saw years later. Performances from Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman are fabulous and complimented by appearances from their supporting cast, including Gwyneth Paltrow, R. Lee Ermey, Richard Roundtree, John C. McGinley and Kevin Spacey among a bunch of other “Oh it’s the guy from….” Actors you’ve seen before.

The film is said to not have tested well way back in 1995, making New Line Cinema believe the film would not be successful.  When word of mouth and critical response proved much more positive, the film became a big hit that year.  There is no denying this film’s place in the thriller pantheon.  There is an incredible chemistry between Pitt and Freeman as two detectives in different phases of their careers. The direction is singular with the director and Fincher does not disappoint here.

30 years later, does the potency of Se7en dilute at all? Not a bit.  There is a punch that lands to this material.  It’s not a film that provides a happiness but is still so engrossing and entertaining, even if it ends in a dark way.  You want to see this case solved and you go through the same Hell as Mills and Somerset do.  In Se7en, it rains in this Hell, and these murders are grotesque too.  It’s incredible to think that there was a time when the style of the film wasn’t the norm.  The lighting, the atmosphere, the production design, and the tone are all at once Fincher’s and yet now most thrillers or horror films take at least one element from Se7en’s aesthetic.

Through all of Se7en’s 30 years, it’s also been rolled out on VHS, Laserdisc, DVD and Blu-ray with a few different results. A New Line Platinum Series DVD was a hot collector’s item once upon a time, and a 2010 Blu-ray Digibook was reviewed by my colleague Brian White way back in 2010!  Now in 2025, which I can’t believe I’m writing, we’ve got the 4K release of Se7en and now, what may be the best the film has ever looked!

Video

Encoding: HEVC / H.265

Resolution: 2160p

Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1

HDR: HDR10

Layers: BD-100

Clarity/Details:  Se7en comes to 4K with an excellent looking new transfer sourced from a new 8K Master! To get it out of the way, recent interviews with David Fincher confirm that he has used AI in the remastering process to fix a few problem areas in the film, but upon my viewing I didn’t notice anything that anyone would find to gripe about. Details are sharp and grain is refined.  The look of the film is dim and dark, but the shadowy nature of the film actually thrives in 4K.

Depth: Even in darkness, depth of field is handled beautifully overall.  The shots in the film are often deep in focus even if the scene is moving quickly, with shots lingering for added effect in moments where crime scenes are involved.

Black Levels: Blacks have a nice shadowy and inky look here, with no details lost in those frames going close to full blackout.

Color Reproduction: Colors are drab in the film save for a sun-drenched finale and a golden lit dinner sequence.  The look of the film is rain soaked, grey, blue and steely.  This is how it’s always been meant to look and therefore looks faithful to what audiences saw no doubt in 1995.

Flesh Tones: Flesh tones are fabulous here, looking natural with some makeup effects looking almost too real in some of those gruesome crime scenes.

Noise/Artifacts: None. The transfer is pristine to my eyes.

Audio

Audio Format(s): English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1

Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish

Dynamics: On DVD, Se7en had a 6.1 DTS ES surround track, which the Blu-ray then beefed up to a 7.1 mix.  This 4K release sidesteps both of those tracks for a new one – This time, a more 1995 relevant 5.1 mix.  Taking the time to go to my old DVD and Blu-ray, I am happy to report that the mix doesn’t deviate much from the previous ones that had more channels.  In fact, using those wonderful up-mixers that come on your receivers will make the experience as immersive as you’d like! The soundstage is full and busy with surround activity!

Low-Frequency Extension: Score and the occasional tense scene with gunshots, a lingering helicopter, or a passing train bring bass to the film.  There is a satisfying hit from the subwoofer in those moments, but this isn’t an action film, so don’t listen for anything deafening.

Surround Sound Presentation: Rain, building/room echo, city noise, diner noise… the surrounds have a lot to do, and they perform well in this new 5.1 formation.

Dialogue Reproduction: Dialogue is paramount to Se7en, and the new mix makes sure you hear every line perfectly.

Extras  

No new bonus features come with this new edition of Se7en, but it would be a mistake to call that a disappointment.  The ported over content is full of great stuff that will engage the filmmaker in anyone and give insight into the making of the film in depth! Se7en has been made available in a standard edition, which is a sort of slipcase with a magnet clasp gatefold inside.  Yes, the disc is wedged between two cardboard pieces, so steer clear of this if that gets your goat.  Artwork for this version is quite striking regardless of the tricky disc storage. There is also a steelbook option available.

The Se7en Ultra HD Blu-ray disc contains the following previously released special features:

• Commentaries –
  • The Stars: David Fincher, Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman
  • The Story: Richard Dyer, Andrew Kevin Walker, Richard Francis-Bruce, Michael De Luca, David Fincher
  • The Picture: Darius Khondji, Arthur Max, Richard Francis-Bruce, Richard Dyer, David Fincher
  • The Sound: Ren Klyce, Howard Shore, Richard Dyer, David Fincher
• Deleted Scenes –
  • Car Ride in from Gluttony
  • My Future
  • Raid on Victor’s
  • Spare Some Change?
  • Tracy Wakes from Light Sleep
  • Pride
• Alternate endings –
  • Animated storyboards of un-shot ending
  • Original “Test” ending
• Still Photographs (featurettes) –
  • John Doe’s Photographs
  • Victor’s Decomposition
  • Police Crime Scene Photographs
  • Production Photographs
  • The Notebooks
• Production Design (featurette)
• Mastering for the Home Theater (featurette)
• Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence: Early Storyboards (featurette)
• Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence: Rough Version (featurette)
• Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence: Final Edit (featurette)
• Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence: Stereo Audio Commentary One – The Concept – Designer Kyle Cooper (featurette)
• Exploration of the Opening Title Sequence: Stereo Audio Commentary Two – The Sound – Brant Biles & Robert Margouleff (featurette)
• Theatrical EPK

Summary

It is undeniable to think of Se7en as anything other than a masterpiece in cinema.  It stands in the top reaches of the thriller genre and high on the list of David Fincher films too! It’s exciting to see that his films are all slowly but surely coming to 4K with this, Zodiac and Panic Room all debuting within months of one another.  One sees the varied material that David Fincher has done and can see his style and technique on full display in each film.  I’ll leave this last note for my buddy Blu-ray Brian when I say, I sure do hope by some small miracle that Fight Club is Fincher’s next 4K release. Until then, we can revel in Se7en looking the best it ever has!

Buy the standard 4K Blu-ray of Se7en HERE

Buy the Steelbook of Se7en in 4K HERE