New Line Cinema released Seven (or the unfortunately stylized Se7en) internationally on 22 September 1995. It premiered a week earlier in New York City.

New Line was skeptical of it based on test audiences. But it came out of the gate at the top of the pack its first weekend — at least partly because it was up against Showgirls and To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. But it stayed at the top for four weeks, besting some strong competition like Devil in a Blue Dress and Assassins.

I really like Seven. I’m kind of surprised that it was so popular. Those underwhelmed test audiences were probably right. This film isn’t even a mystery but, like a mystery, it works largely as a puzzle. Of course, the Envy piece doesn’t work. It is tossed off with a line of dialogue. And ultimately the ending makes no sense. But it seems like it does!

Why do I like it? Probably the life in Hell feel of the whole thing. I’m not a huge David Fincher fan. But he has a great eye. I’m a big defender of Alien 3. It’s masterful and a wonderful film.

And Kevin Spacey is perfectly cast as the smug little psychopath. Morgan Freeman played the kind of role we white people just love to see him in since he busted out of The Electric Company. And Brad Pitt is, well, a very believable cop.

While I still think most people like it because of the clean ending, Seven is a film for all psychotronic fans to cherish. It is a very compelling film.

Other 22 September Anniversaries

Filmmakers

• Erich von Stroheim (1885-1957): Influential silent film director but best known as an actor in films like The Crime of Dr. Crespi, Alraune, and, of course, Sunset Boulevard.
• Paul Muni (1895-1967): Actor known for Scarface, I Am a Fugitive From a Chain Gang, and more.
• John Houseman (1902-1988): Although mostly a producer, he became a notable actor later in life in films like The Cheap Detective and The Fog.
• Harry Thomas (1909-1996): Makeup artist in dozens of low-budget films like Glen or Glenda and The Neanderthal Man.
• Paul Le Mat (1945-): Actor known for Melvin and Howard, Death Valley, Puppet Master, and more.
• John Woo (1946-): Director of The Killer and Mission: Impossible 2.

Films

• Tormented (1960): When a jilted lover dies, she haunts her former lover as he prepares to marry.
• Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster (1965): Mars has killed off all its women so they come to Earth to steal ours.
• Canadian Bacon (1995): Remember when the idea of the US invading Canada was absurd?
• Showgirls (1995): A young stripper claws her way to the top. I found it kind of boring but critics hated it so much it’s probably worth a look.
• The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1995): Kind of a parody of the original.
• Addams Family Reunion (1998): The family searches for relatives.
• Feast (2005): Monsters attack a bar.
• The Devil’s Chair (2007): Mental patient goes back to face his fears. Bad idea.
• It Lives Inside (2023): A teen unleashes a demon that feeds on her loneliness.
• No One Will Save You (2023): A woman in a remote house is attacked by space aliens.

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Seven image taken from Wikipedia under Fair Use.