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The Usual Suspects: Why it's still one of the best crime movies ever
The Usual Suspects made its theatrical debut on August 16, 1995, introducing audiences to one of the cinema's greatest, most shocking crime thrillers. Directed by Bryan Singer, the story follows an interrogation of a con artist (Kevin Spacey) who, after surviving a drug robbery gone wrong, tries to prove the existence of a mythical crime lord who sent him and his partners to carry out their fateful heist.
Disregarding the controversies surrounding Singer and Spacey, The Usual Suspects has left behind a prestigious legacy that lasts to this day. Presenting a mind-blowing story told by a fearsome, cunning villain with spectacular performers, The Usual Suspects remains a classic of cinema 30 years after its release.
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The American Film Institute even placed it in the Top 10 list for the best mystery films ever made. Though many people already know the movie's legendary twist, The Usual Suspects continues to captivate audiences.
An iconic villain steals the show
The movie's antagonist, Keyser Söze, cemented himself as one of cinema's greatest villains by executing one of the greatest twists in film history. During the movie, Söze is built up to be a legendary, ruthless crime boss who may or may not exist. The only thing people know about Söze is the story of how he killed his family and the criminals who held them hostage just to prove his willpower.
Such a tale established him as a ruthless and fearsome villain driven by the sole purpose of controlling others through fear and lies, turning him into the Devil or Boogeyman of the criminal underworld. The movie also delivers some truly memorable quotes to build up the terror and mystique of Söze.
However, the movie changes everything in its final moments, revealing Spacey's character, Verbal Kint, was Söze, who had fabricated an elaborate story based on things he saw in Agent Kujan's (Chazz Palminteri) office to lie his way to freedom.
Kint convinced Kujan and the audience that Dean Keaton (Gabriel Byrne) was the real Keyser Söze without even saying it. This resulted in a mind-blowing double twist.
As he sheds his disguise as a cowardly, pitiful man with a physical disability, Söze proves how fiendish and frightening a figure he is. Using his skills of deception, he tricked the criminal justice system into letting him go before he retreated into the shadows, proving that evil can take the most unsuspecting form.
By portraying such a conniving character with so many emotional masks, Spacey won an Academy Award for his performance as Söze.
A memorable twist makes the film more rewatchable
Even after the film's big twist, The Usual Suspects still warrants multiple viewings from audiences. Many small details hint at Söze's identity and his clever scheme. For instance, when Kint sits alone in Kujan's office, he is seen looking around all the agent's belongings, silently building the false narrative in his head.
Kint is also said to have legal protection from the Prince of Darkness, foreshadowing the reveal of his true identity, Keyser Söze. Audiences may need to watch the movie more than once to catch what they missed the first time, making for an elaborate and surprising narrative that is much more compelling.
Despite its deceptive nature, The Usual Suspects tells some hard truths about the real world, and the audience comes to appreciate the story through its rewatchability.
The Usual Suspects proves that not everyone is who they appear to be and that the truth is a construct that can easily be distorted. Like a true devil, Söze mixes his lies with the truth to show the flaws of the criminal justice system.
Naturally, for his work on the film's mind-blowing script, future Mission: Impossible director Christopher McQuarrie won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. The Writers Guild of America even put the film's script in its list of the 101 Best Screenplays Ever Written.
The film features an engaging story, nevertheless
At times, it seems like this twist ending of The Usual Suspects has overshadowed the rest of the film. While Söze's story was predominantly false, that shouldn't detract viewers from seeing the value of what came before the film's big twist. What Söze made up remains unclear. Kobayashi turned out to be a real person, proving there may be some truth to Söze's story.
Although Keaton's portrayal was based on Söze's fabricated story, it is difficult not to feel sympathy for him. He tries to move on from his criminal past, only to feel compelled to pull off a heist to make money and exact revenge on the NYPD for ruining his chances at a new life.
Kujan argues that Keaton wasn't a changed man, and while that may have been true, Söze proved to him that he was wrong about Keaton as well. Perhaps he was trying to change, and the NYPD did prevent him from doing so. Thus, in a bit of tragic irony, the police may have inadvertently driven Keaton and his partners down the road to their destruction.
In addition, Spacey's performance shouldn't overshadow the rest of the cast. The Usual Suspects features spectacular performances from its other main players, particularly Byrne, Palminteri, Benicio del Toro, and Pete Postlethwaite. It even shows Giancarlo Esposito giving a noteworthy performance long before he broke out on Breaking Bad.
The Usual Suspects may be best known for its twist ending, but the film as a whole has held up three decades after its release. The movie is a gripping, gritty, and gut-wrenching crime thriller, only to flip the script and make everyone revisit and rethink what they witnessed. Few films have come close to replicating such a surprising story, making The Usual Suspects even more remarkable.
