Analysis of 'Se7en' Opening Credits

During the opening credits of ‘Se7en’, there is a montage of the thriller bombarding us with sickening images of depravity and corruption. There is a series of quick cuts which reveal images which can only be described as disturbing, which flash and overlap to conjure up a sense of inscrutability and mystery. Thin, abrasive writing is used to suggest that they have been scratched in, which suggests violence and torture. The sequence focuses a lot on fingers and hands, concentrating on the dirtiness of the fingernails and bandages around the fingers. This implies that the person is very proactive and does a lot of dirty work. This could also imply that he is cunning and devious. We can understand from this opening sequence that the film is going to revolve around the idea of plotting the murders of people in very tortuous ways. An eerie effect is created by the flickering images to generate the idea of an old movie as it splices. The use of books is very prominent in the sequence. It suggests that all of the sly, devious plotting is held within a book, each page showing the ways in which people have died or will die. Following on from this idea, writing also plays a significant role in this opening sequence. Our attention is brought to the highlighting of words on a page, however they are highlighted in black, so this creates a more disturbing effect. There are flickering images of photographs and film which suggest that he has been stalking these people before tormenting and ultimately killing them. Towards the end of the sequence, there is reference to a needle, binding together the book of compiled images and texts. The fact that a needle has been used again suggests violence and torture.