Shortly after making his directorial debut with the sci-fi movie Alien 3 , David Fincher paid a visit to the crime thriller genre with Se7en.
Set in an unnamed, crime-ridden city, Se7en follows Detective Lt. Together they investigate a series of disturbing murders inspired by the seven deadly sins. This leads them to John Doe Kevin Spacey , the man behind the murders, who has one final horrifying surprise for Somerset and Mills. Despite being an original story, a theory suggests Se7en is linked to a famous superhero, and tells the origin story of its most notable villain. The mystery of the city Se7en is set in, its atmosphere, and its high crime rate have led to a theory shared on Reddit that Se7en is set in Gotham City before the rise of Batman, hence why all the crimes.
Se7en's consistent downpour of rain is a great way of underscoring the thematic and tonal core of the film, but it also served a pragmatic function.
John Doe confesses to Somerset and Mills that he believes he was chosen by God to send a message about the ubiquity of and apathy toward sin, which is also why he had no remorse. Doe threatens to plead insanity to avoid punishment unless Somerset and Mills escort him to an undisclosed location where they will find the final two victims: envy and wrath.
Mills gives in and shoots Doe on the spot, killing him. The Clown Prince of Crime has had many origin stories over the years in comic books and movies as well, and Mills becoming the Joker is an interesting one.
