Have you ever sat with yourself in the dark and thought deeply of your sins? Attrition is a term used in the movie to describe people who repented out of fear. When you think of it, don't we all? Lust is part of every human being's life in 2026, yet we all pretend to be penitents, out of fear from the public eye. Attrition. Welcome to one of David Fincher's masterpieces!
Story
Two detectives, David Mills and William Somerset. New and Old school, both get involved through a series of Killings, performed by a certain serial killer called: John Doe. At first glance, it may seem like a normal psychopath killing people for his own pleasure. When you take a second look, you find a well educated man trying to perform a spectacle to the whole world, not to remember him. But to remember themselves, their sins.
Somerset
"Ernest Hemingway once wrote, 'The world is a fine place and worth fighting for.' I agree with the second part."
That's William's last line in the movie. With it we understand that William doesn't have hope, it's not because he was born that way,
it's because he spent too much time in the city. The city where all the events happened is unnamed, that's a clever move, because
it represents everywhere, from New York to Berlin to Moscow. It's the whole world, you spend too much time in it and you understand:
there is nothing to be rescued. Rescued from what? By whom?
Let's take a look at Kitty Genovese's case.
Kitty Genovese
New York, 1964. Kitty was attacked outside her building at night, naturally she cried out for help. To her surprise (not ours), no one answered her cries. Today this is normal, I personally know guys that wouldn't flinch at the scene (I don't exclude myself). William says this: "I just don't think I can continue to live in a place that embraces and nurtures apathy as if it was virtue." Remember this is 1964, we are in 2026.
Mills
While William sleeps by the sound of the clock, Mills sleeps by the sound of the train. Young, new to the city, full of hope. Mills began his work as a detective beside William. When they exchange in the bar talking about what they think of the world, we see that Mills is the contrary of William, he sees the bright side, there is still something to rescue, the world CAN be a better place. We can see that further more, during the killings, William treats the killer as a normal human being, for him this is normal. While Mills treats him as a psycho, even during the car escorting. He always tells him he is nothing but a madman while Somerset stays silent. For Mills, the world is a good place in first place, it's just people like John Doe who make it worse. For William, the world is not a good place in first, John Doe only shows it.
John Doe
I will sound crazy but John Doe lives among us, meaning look around and observe carefully, you will find him. In each class you find that one kid who hates the system, hates the world, he doesn't want to change it to the good, he wants to change it for his own good. John Doe is not a crazy man, he is just envious of that indifference. See, the indifference we see in people is not acquired, it's born with them. Many like John Doe just wanna go by their lives like everyone does, they can't. I reckon it's because they want to own everything. Everyone. They will wrap it as if to show you your true self, they are only showing you your bad side. Everyone has the good in them, even John Doe.
Gluttony
The first murder, a very fat man was killed. This might seem normal, but it appears he was dead by excess eating, someone forced him to eat that much. Let's take a look at La Divina Commedia by Dante. In the 3rd circle of hell in Dante's journey, there is the circle of Gluttony. Sinners are punished by eating vast amounts of filth and mud. This is due to the contrapasso logic (the punishment must mirror the sin). From the 1st murder, we can see John Doe is a fan of Dante.
Greed
A lawyer dead. Forced to cut a pound of his flesh, at gun point, what part would you choose? Dante's Fourth Circle of Hell. Punishment here is to push endless amounts of weights. Some say it is to symbolize the burden they had when they were alive and others say, pushing wealth in life and pushing weights in afterlife. Both involve weights so our victim didn't really have time to make up his mind.
Sloth
Not dead. For a full year, a drug dealer was tied to a bed, kept barely living. Dante's Fifth Circle of Hell (alongside wrath). Endless Running.
Lust
The oldest job to ever exist, a prostitute, is killed by a man while making love to her with a blade. The man was forced at gunpoint by John Doe. Dante's Second Circle of Hell. Punishment is a storm that swirls the sinners, if you let lust guide you through life, now the storm will.
Pride
A model dead, given a choice, live and be disfigured or die. You know her choice. Dante doesn't have a circle for pride, he considers it the first sin. Because of pride all other sins are possible, he puts it in the Purgatorio, in the first terrace. Sinners are carrying huge rocks on their backs, those who held their head high in life shall have it low in the after.
Envy
Mills' wife. Dead. John confesses he always envied Mills' life, not for his money, job or any other material things. For its simplicity, imagine coming home to a beautiful wife who loves you, you work a 9-5 and argue about whether to buy that sofa. Truly a dream. Dante doesn't have a circle for it. But Jesus Christ felt it, the reason for his crucifixion was the leaders' envy of him, not fear or rage.
Wrath
When Mills finds out about his wife, he is given a choice: Kill Doe and avenge his wife or let him live. He kills him and completes the circle. Dante's Fifth Circle of Hell. Sinners here are blinded with smoke, those who didn't see reason in life, won't see it in the after.
Conclusion
The circle is complete, John Doe dies, Mills to prison, William most likely stays. As Mills said in the car, everyone will forget about this in about two months. They really did, John Doe truly shocked me with the ending, truly a masterpiece for a "psycho". But the most important question is: Will the world ever change? Will we ever change?