Fincher says, “You have a responsibility for the way you make an audience feel, and I want them to feel uncomfortable.”
The following is a circular color palette. 14 scenes have been selected from the film. 7 scenes are related to the seven deadly sins and 7 are key turning points from the movie. 15 colors are extracted from each scene to capture the colors in the scene.
The colors are arranged in a circular pattern. When one moves in a clockwise direction, one can see a gradual change in the color palette.
The following is a Pie chart showcasing the composition of each color and its shades in the color palette.
The chart was developed using the individual 210 swatches selected from the 14 scenes. These swatches were arranged as per their shades and the following Pie chart was designed.
One can clearly see the dominant colors in the chart, which can be further analysed to understand the visual storytelling technique.
Color can emotionally affect the viewer's experience.
In the radial graphs below, an analysis was conducted to see the relationship between the dominant colors from the palette and how strongly they convey the emotions and feelings associated with the themes of the movie.
The relationship between the color and the emotion is based on the circular axes of the graph. Lower on the axis meant the relation is weak between the color and the stated emotion. Higher on the axis meant the relation is strong between the color and the stated emotion.
Se7en takes place in a city, viewers don't know anything about. The rainy, urban landscape of the city is the primary backdrop of the film. The city is often shown in a de-saturated, in shades of blue, shadows and murky mid tones. The portrayal of the city in this manner conveys mundane and lack of care in the city and the people living in this urban landscape.
Darius Khondji, the cinematographer brought his distinct look known as ‘Dark Clarity’. He developed a narrow dynamic range in the highlights and mid-tones while retaining deep, rich black tones. By increasing the contrast the cinematographer was able to fill each scene with a dread and used the shadow to drive the mysterious aspects of the story.
Small real light sources were used to light the scene. The lighting guides the viewer’s to what is important in the scene and maintains the atmosphere of dread throughout the movie. Use of light kept the effect of fairly murky mid-tones and subtle highlights but loads of detail and richness in the shadows.
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