The Usual Suspects (1995)
About This Movie
Five criminals brought together by a police lineup find themselves drawn into a complex heist orchestrated by a mysterious crime lord named Keyser Soze, and the story is told through the testimony of the one survivor, a small time con artist with a limp and a seemingly cooperative attitude. Bryan Singer directed Christopher McQuarrie's script with the precision of a magic trick, arranging every scene so that the final revelation recontextualizes everything that came before.
Why It's a Classic
McQuarrie's screenplay, which won the Academy Award, is constructed as an elaborate con in which the audience is the mark, and the pleasure of the film lies in discovering exactly how thoroughly you have been deceived. Kevin Spacey's Verbal Kint is a masterwork of misdirection: meek, talkative, physically unimposing, and apparently grateful for the chance to cooperate, he disarms both the detective and the viewer with self deprecating charm. The ensemble cast, including Gabriel Byrne, Benicio del Toro, Kevin Pollak, and Stephen Baldwin, creates a group dynamic where each member's ego and expertise contribute to a plan none of them fully understands. The coffee cup drop in the final moments, as detective Dave Kujan pieces together the truth, is one of cinema's great reveals, made more powerful by the realization that the clues were hiding in plain sight the entire time.
Fun Fact
Benicio del Toro deliberately made his character, Fenster, nearly unintelligible, mumbling and slurring his lines to the point where even his fellow cast members could not always understand him. McQuarrie has said that the name Keyser Soze was inspired by a real Turkish criminal, and 'Soze' roughly translates to 'talks too much' in Turkish. The lineup scene, which is supposed to be serious, dissolved into improvised comedy because the actors could not stop laughing at del Toro's antics, and Singer decided the looser takes worked better. Spacey was relatively unknown before the film and won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Parent Note
The film contains violence including shootings and an explosion, strong language throughout, and references to murder and organized crime. There is a description of violence against a family that is disturbing though not shown in graphic detail. Drug references. Rated R. The plot complexity requires attentive viewing, and younger audiences may find the nonlinear structure challenging. Best for mid teens and up. The film is fundamentally about deception, and repeat viewings reveal how carefully the con is constructed.
Quick Facts
- Year
- 1995
- Type
- 🎬 Movie
- Category
- Mystery / Thriller
- Age Group
- Adults (Ages 18+)