The Usual Suspects (1995) Review

Lucas Versantvoort / 22 Sep 2015

If ever there was a film that existed solely for its plot twist, the Usual Suspects is that film. Many like myself were floored by the final plot twist and it's since become a classic. 

Our story begins at the end, when the unseen criminal mastermind Keyser Soze, shoots an acquaintance of his on a boat. Soze escapes after he lights the fuse that will blow up the boat. The police arrive and the investigation kicks off. This leads to Agent Kujan talking with/interrogating one of the suspects, a cripple called Verbal Kint. They casually chat in an office and slowly Verbal begins telling him the events that lead to that fateful night at the docks. 

Doesn't sound like much at first glance, but the final twist will have you reexamining everything that came before. It changes everything. Some might criticize the fact that the nature of the twist undoes a lot of what came before, but when the twist is this good, who even cares? In fact, it slightly reminds me of Kurosawa's Rashômon with its different retellings of the same events. It also helps that the twist is so wonderfully presented by editor/composer John Ottman.

What's particularly pleasing about the twist is that you find all kinds of hints with repeat viewings. A small line here, a little visual clue there, little things that'll make you wonder how you didn't notice these things before. 

The acting is also noteworthy, particularly Spacey's. Once you figure out his game, watching his performance becomes very entertaining. Very multi-layered. The rest of the 'usual suspects' are all great as well. The ones that deserve special mention are Benicio del Toro who injects a basically useless character with a lot of life and wit and Pete Postlethwaith, who plays Soze's assistant with a dryness that is both terrifying and fun to watch. 

The Usual Suspects is, in a way, my kind of mystery/thriller/crime/drama film. Everything builds up to a wonderful twist that has you rethinking the rest of the story. It adds a lot of replay value, not to mention the added bonus of trying to find all the hints strewn across the story like breadcrumbs.