The chase scene in the film Se7en directed by David Fincher is a masterfully done piece of cinematography. Directing a film requires intense focus and creative vision and Fincher showcases that he has a wealth of both by creating this chase scene. It seems as if everything has a reason for being there in the scene and it all comes together beautifully in capturing the mood and grabbing the attention of the audience. This scene uses shadows as well as an overall dark setting and varying types of camera shots to set a mood of suspense and anxiety for the viewer.

In this chase scene, shadows are used to characterize and set the mood of the characters involved.  For almost the entirety of the scene Detective Mills is only seen by the viewers with a shadow covering half of his face and the fleeing killer’s face is always concealed by shadows. The unknown serial killer is constantly hidden by a mask of shadows which protects his anonymity and further encourages his resemblance of evil. The dark facelessness of the killer removes the human aspects from him to completely isolate his character as a representation of evil itself. His concealment is contrasted by the lighting on Detective Mills and also the lighting on the children in the room he breaks in to. They are all pictured with light shining on half of their faces with the other half being concealed by shadows. This contrast on each of their faces adds to the suspenseful mood and also represents the good that still occupies the dark world they live in. Mills can be viewed with light on his face for almost the entirety of the scene and the contrast between him and the murderer lasts throughout the entire scene. The difference between lighting and shadows for the entire length of the scene to hold the suspense for the whole scene. This contrast can be clearly seen near the end of the scene when the killer is holding the gun to the detective’s head. Even though he is in the most danger, Mills still has a ray of light on his face, giving the audience a sliver of hope through their anxiety when the dark and overbearing killer is holding a gun to his head. Even though most viewers will not even consciously notice the difference in lighting and shadows across the characters faces, it will still be the subtle inducer of their suspense and anxiety.

The overall lighting throughout the chase contributes to the scenes suspenseful and anxious mood. The lighting is very dim, dark, and dull for the entire chase sequence to force the viewer into a feeling of uncertainty and suspense as they do not know what could happen next in this color muted world. With the setting being primarily dark, it goes hand in hand with the darkness and mysteriousness of the serial killer because the viewer never knows when he could pop up out of the shadows. It gives the viewer a general uneasiness and anxiousness throughout the entire scene, but especially in the final frames before Mills gets hit because the viewer just has no idea who or what could be hiding in the shadows of the city. Viewers can barely see the two running through various dark areas such as underground tunnels and stairwells, so the feeling of suspense comes in not being able to see whether the protagonist is safe where he is because the killer could come out of nowhere at any time.

The camera angles used at the beginning and end of the scene greatly add to the overall anxiousness and suspense of the scene. In the first confrontation between Mills and the killer, there is a low angle on Mills to represent him in a controlling manor. Contrarily, the serial killer is shown at a high angle making him look weak and inferior to the detective. However, as the scene progresses and the killer hits Mills over the head, the roles change and the suspense reaches a climax. Suddenly there is a high angle shot on Mills lying on the ground in pain which makes him look incredibly weak and vulnerable. This is followed by arguably the most powerful shot of the scene with a low angle shot of not the serial killer specifically, but his gun. The gun looks as powerful as ever held against the detective’s head and it creates the most anxious and suspenseful shot of the scene. This forces the viewers to expect the worst and make them anxious about the detective’s imminent death at the gunpoint by the killer. Then an extreme close up low angle shot of the detective with the gun pressed to his head creates even more anxiousness with the extreme emotions being clearly seen due to the close up shot. The viewers believe just as Mills face shows he believes, that he will die and there’s no possible way out of the situation bringing the suspenseful tone of the scene to a climax.  Through the use of these different shot types, the scene establishes a tone a suspense and anxiety.

The chase scene in the film Se7en directed by David Fincher is a perfect example of a director using various techniques in order to establish a specific mood and feeling for the audience. The scene is a chase scene between Detective Mills and an unknown serial killer which leads the viewers throughout various urban pathways leaving the viewers constantly wondering what will happen next. Through the use of facial shadows, dark overall settings, and various camera shots the scene establishes a mood of suspense and anxiousness.
