A “v” is used in place of the letter “7,” giving the title of Se7en. However, Se7en is such a gritty and riveting criminal thriller that it’s quite easy to overlook how silly the title actually is. The following films are all well worth viewing if you enjoy suspenseful, dark, and nauseating crime, thriller, and mystery films. They all have some similarities to Fincher’s 1995 film, which is about to receive a 4K remaster.
Zodiac (2007)
Although David Fincher has produced a number of psychological thrillers, Zodiac from 2007 is undoubtedly the one that most closely resembles Se7en. This is due to the fact that each follows a group of individuals (two detectives in Se7en and three separate men in Zodiac) as they urgently try to find a fugitive killer who is on the loose and terrorising hundreds, if not millions, of people in the process.
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Despite how fantastic Se7en is, The Silence of the Lambs, which was also released in the 1990s, makes it difficult to crown Se7en as the best American crime/mystery film of that era. It’s an incredibly well-written picture with flawless acting, and it may be the best movie or TV show to date to include the Hannibal Lecter character.
Insomnia (2002)
Insomnia, which was directed by Christopher Nolan and came out between Batman Begins (2005) and Memento (2000), may very well be his most underappreciated work. It’s a psychological thriller about losing one’s hold on reality while also looking into a murder, so it’s more like the former than the latter.
Gone Girl (2014)
Gone Girl, another unpredictable thriller from David Fincher, isn’t quite as grim as Se7en, but it still attempts to be quite startling. It concerns a guy who, when his wife mysteriously vanishes, comes under public and legal investigation. Some suspect that he may have murdered his wife, but he has steadfastly maintained his innocence throughout.
I Saw the Devil (2010)
There are several excellent South Korean thrillers available, especially in the last few years. I Saw the Devil, which tells the chilling tale of a secret agent who goes to tremendous lengths to track down and exact revenge on a legendary serial murderer after his fiancé is discovered slain, is undoubtedly one of the best and, possibly, one of the most extreme of them all.
Nightcrawler (2014)
Similarly to Se7en, Nightcrawler is a neo-noir film that explores some very dark territory, but having a totally different general premise. It focuses on Lou Bloom, a man who goes to increasingly desperate measures to record footage of crime scenes that he may later sell to a news outlet.
Vengeance Is Mine (1979)
Vengeance Is Mine is an overlooked Japanese crime film about a serial killer that would have seemed even more startling when it was initially released in the late 1970s. Iwao Enokizu is the name of the killer in question, and the film depicts his actions in a way that seems to make his on-screen atrocities even more unsettling.
Prisoners (2013)
Vengeance Is Mine is an overlooked Japanese crime film about a serial killer that would have seemed even more startling when it was initially released in the late 1970s. Iwao Enokizu is the name of the killer in question.
Memories of Murder (2003)
Memories of Murder, although not the celebrated director’s debut film, was the first of his to garner a sizable amount of worldwide notice. Given the high calibre of his work over the past few decades, it’s one of the best pictures the South Korean director has ever created.
The House That Jack Built (2018)
The House That Jack Built, which Lars von Trier directed in 2018, is likely one of his most unsettling and distressing films overall, at least in terms of violence. It provides a chilling glimpse inside the life (and mind) of a serial murderer named Jack as he reminisces about the horrific acts he perpetrated over a 12-year span.
