The Usual Suspects

One of my favorite films of all times, The Usual Suspects is an exeptionally strong ensemble cast work. In particular Gabriel Byrne's cynical and beaten down reformed criminal gone bad role is played so ernestly that you forget you are watching a film. Kevin Spacey's Verbal Gint character is terrific to watch as well. Benicio del Toro steals scenes with his bizzare choice of character in an otherwise nothing role. Even Steven Baldwin turns in a good performance as does Kevin Pollack in a somewhat different role than he usually plays.

All the acting is terrific and more importantly, the script is nearly flawless as is the direction. The plot moves along in it's multi-threaded fashion while keeping viewers entertained and involved enough to pay attention.

The ending will either annoy or delight you depending on how you view films. I loved it and on second viewing the forshadowing of events are right in front of you like a good murder mystery although The Usual Suspects is much more than a mystery film or buddy flick or crime caper film while being a little bit of each.

It's great to see a film that isn't high budget and relies on acting and a good script to move the film along. Although embraced by hollywood this is as independent as you will find in it's easy tone and believable characters.

There is simply nothing worth complaining about. Get this DVD, it's additonal content is a lot of fun to watch and helps understanding The Usuual Suspects as more than a film but a project and labor of love that works on all fronts.

What can I say about 'The Usual Suspects' that hasn't already been said? The star-heavy cast is excellent, the story is gripping and intricate and unlike other "surprise ending" tales, this one is well worth watching again.

The video and audio quality is very good on this Blu-ray version.

However, the disc is completely lacking in extras. Not even so much as a directors commentary. If the studio had actually put some effort into this release (commentary, behind the scenes, discussion with the writer, etc.) , I could easily see it getting a 5-star review - the movie is good enough to deserve that kind of effort.

"The Usual Suspects" is perfectly watchable, but far from great. It probably didn't help that I watched this in 2004, well past all the breathless hoopla and the awards. It probably also doesn't help that I'm not a big Kevin Spacey fan-he is a bit histrionic for my taste. Gabrile Bryne was excellent in this movie though, as was Stephen Baldwin. The plot moves reasonably fast, but is ultimately unsatisfactory. Everyone's heard of the plot by now: 5 random guys (the "usual suspects') are brought in for questioning on a crime, then get together to plot a new crime. Only one-Spacey-survives at the end and tells his tale of a super bad guy who engineered all of it. The problem with the plot is that it has a lot of holes in it, isn't as clever as it purports to be, and ultimately fails to make sufficient sense. The thing with having a twist at the end is that the whole movie still needs to make perfect sense upon reviewing, which in my opinion, this movie failed to do! The motives of the characters (especially Soze) were far from clear---does a mastermind of that sort need these 2 bit criminals to help him along? How could he ensure that he wouldn't get caught up in it at the end? How does the Steve Baldwin character come up with the plot in the first place? How do the cops even get their hands on Soze if he's so good? Wasn't there a better, less elaborate way for him to off the witness?, etc. etc. There are just way too many questions...and the plot ultimately proves to be dull and contrived. Some of the scenes are just too self-important and not clever enough by half (much in the way that "The Da Vinci Code" is not clever enough, to use a recent analogy!). The only redeeming factors are an engaging cast and a quick (if rambling and somewhat pointless) plot. This isn't a bad movie but it doesn't live upto the hype. If you really want a well-crafted movie with a big surprise at the end, watch "The Sixth Sense". If you want a clever movie that makes you work to put everything together, watch "Memento".