THE USUAL SUSPECTS
dir: Bryan Singer
"The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist. " - Verbal
Brief Synopsis
A group of unlikely criminals plot to work together after a random police lineup. The aftermath of one of their jobs becomes a puzzling mystery that only few know the answer to.
Why It's Here
"The Usual Suspects" is an incredibly layered film. It takes multiple viewing's to see the whole picture, it takes your brain and what it knows then flips it, and then proceeds to do it again. When the whole thing is over, it almost feels like a cheat, if the story weren't told so well.
The first thing worth noticing is the great cast and characters and how well the cast work together, particularly Kevin Spacey, as well as Stephen Baldwin and Benicio Del Toro. Each criminal has their own attitude, personality and way of doing their business, however their connection with crime brings them together but their vast differences is what makes them bump heads causing the confusing aftermath to their crime. The whole film is told through flashback as Verbal tells the story with some intermissions with live events that further elaborate on elements Verbal is withholding or doesn't know to give a more complete picture. Verbal is interesting as a narrator because he seems loyal and true yet as we learn, he is still a criminal, and even being a narrator he is an unreliable narrator. Giving the film a sense of cautious doubt on everything that is happening throughout the entire runtime.
The twist ending is legendary in contemporary film, yet I found it interesting but nothing more. It didn't shock me the way that Fight Club or Memento did, instead I was too busy trying to play catch up with the entire thing. The ending makes the film almost seem like a waste, yet it's clever and bold enough to tell this kind of fabrication where no other film would.
The first thing worth noticing is the great cast and characters and how well the cast work together, particularly Kevin Spacey, as well as Stephen Baldwin and Benicio Del Toro. Each criminal has their own attitude, personality and way of doing their business, however their connection with crime brings them together but their vast differences is what makes them bump heads causing the confusing aftermath to their crime. The whole film is told through flashback as Verbal tells the story with some intermissions with live events that further elaborate on elements Verbal is withholding or doesn't know to give a more complete picture. Verbal is interesting as a narrator because he seems loyal and true yet as we learn, he is still a criminal, and even being a narrator he is an unreliable narrator. Giving the film a sense of cautious doubt on everything that is happening throughout the entire runtime.
The twist ending is legendary in contemporary film, yet I found it interesting but nothing more. It didn't shock me the way that Fight Club or Memento did, instead I was too busy trying to play catch up with the entire thing. The ending makes the film almost seem like a waste, yet it's clever and bold enough to tell this kind of fabrication where no other film would.