Movie of the Week: The Usual Suspects

Alexa: The Usual Suspects ranks right up there with The Sixth Sense in film lore as having one of the most notorious plot twists in movie history. So naturally, most cinephiles know the twist whether they’ve seen the movie or not. This was my first viewing of The Usual Suspects, so I was concerned the movie wouldn’t live up to the hype since I went into it knowing the ending – but it still managed to grab me. It starts as a heist movie and builds in complexity and intensity right up until its gripping climax. It’s a sophisticated suspense-filled thrill ride, though for me the intrigue surrounded how the big reveal would unfold rather than what the big reveal actually was. I wish I could have experienced it without that knowledge – it’s difficult to imagine not having the memory of watching The Sixth Sense unspoiled in theaters for the first time. But the script is masterfully constructed, it’s thrilling to see director Bryan Singer’s early potential and the movie is rife with familiar faces (hello there, Gus Fring) and stellar performances (Benicio del Toro, anyone?). But The Usual Suspects belongs to Kevin Spacey. Every word, every gesture is a master class in how to completely transform into a character. The entire movie is framed around his narrative, and entrusting Spacey with that responsibility is one of the many moving parts that elevate this film beyond standard crime fare.

Joel: Film Noir is one of those genres that, like westerns, is nowhere close to being as popular as it once was, and instead only sees a handful of releases. The Usual Suspects is one such example, but it’s an example of modern noir done incredibly well. It’s the process of the natural evolution of the genre, from the more popular tropes of noir from the 40’s into the type of movie that the genre would produce today. Everything’s there, the lowlife criminal element, the story being told predominantly in flashback, the mystery that runs through the entire story, and ultimately the twist at the end of the movie. Like Alexa said, it’s almost impossible to avoid getting this movie spoiled in this day and age, but that doesn’t mean the movie’s pointless without the surprise. Like The Sixth Sense, it’s the type of ending that makes you immediately want to watch the movie again with new eyes, trying to find what clues you missed that now seem so obvious in hindsight. It’s a small, but very distinct difference. This isn’t a movie with a good twist, it’s a good movie with a twist. The acting, the directing, the pacing, they all build up to a movie that it engrossing for the entire runtime, not just the final handful of scenes.  Regardless of what you think you may or may not already know about the movie, it’s worth taking the time to watch it.

Chris: Now that I'm reading through the other reviews, it's almost miraculous how I've gotten this far into my life without A) seeing The Usual Suspects and B) not having the ending of The Usual Suspects spoiled for me. I knew that there was a twist ending but aside from that, I was about to go into this movie with virtually a clean slate. My knowledge of a twist ending worked against me in a big way because I thought the detective telling Verbal that Keaton was Soze was the twist ending and I begrudgingly accepted it because that felt overly predictable. However when the movie kept going and the flashbacks clearly showing it was Kobayashi who clearly killed Keaten so I knew something else must be up. When the actual reveal happened, I was floored as well as beating myself up because it was one of those things where I was disappointed in myself for not seeing it before. The strength really lies totally within Kevin Spacey and the narrative structure that gives you just enough information to make you excited to see the next scene.