The Usual Suspects (1995)

A sole survivor tells of the twisty events leading up to a horrific gun battle on a boat, which began when five criminals met at a seemingly random police lineup.

Director:

Bryan Singer

Writer:

Christopher McQuarrie

Stars:

Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Chazz Palminteri

Top Rated Movies #32 | Won 2 Oscars. Another 35 wins & 17 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Stephen Baldwin	...	McManus
Gabriel Byrne	...	Keaton
Benicio Del Toro	...	Fenster
Kevin Pollak	...	Hockney
Kevin Spacey	...	Verbal
Chazz Palminteri	...	Dave Kujan
Pete Postlethwaite	...	Kobayashi
Suzy Amis	...	Edie Finneran
Giancarlo Esposito	...	Jack Baer
Dan Hedaya	...	Jeff Rabin
Paul Bartel	...	Smuggler
Carl Bressler	...	Saul Berg
Phillipe Simon	...	Fortier
Jack Shearer	...	Renault
Christine Estabrook	...	Dr. Plummer

Storyline

Following a truck hijack in New York, five criminals are arrested and brought together for questioning. As none of them are guilty, they plan a revenge operation against the police. The operation goes well, but then the influence of a legendary mastermind criminal called Keyser Söze is felt. It becomes clear that each one of them has wronged Söze at some point and must pay back now. The payback job leaves 27 men dead in a boat explosion, but the real question arises now: Who actually is Keyser Söze?

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Plot Keywords:

criminal mastermind | surprise ending | criminal | suspect | flashback | 

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Taglines:

Who is Keyser Soze?

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Genres:

Crime | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence and a substantial amount of strong language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Kevin Spacey met with doctors and experts on cerebral palsy to discuss how it might affect his characterization.

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Goofs

An overhead shot of the police car burning shows the surrounding pavement totally dry. Seconds later as the occupants fall out of the car, the pavement is wet and puddled with water.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Keyser Soze: How you doing Keaton?
Keaton: I can't feel my legs... Keyser.

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Crazy Credits

The editor, John Ottman, edited the movie on film. He felt that all the editing done electronically at the time was horrible because all the good editors were still working on film (which is much more difficult). Because of this he thought about putting "Edited on a piece of s*** Steenbeck" at the end of the credits, but instead settled for the more subtle line "Edited on film." Tim Robbins was directing 'Dead Man Walking' at the time and heard about John's idea, which sparked that film's credit ending of "This film was edited on old machines."

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Alternate Versions

The Australian television version left the line-up scene unedited for language. However, all other scenes with strong language, such as McManus's call for payback at the discovery of Finster's body, were shortened or removed.

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Connections

Referenced in Will & Grace: So Long, Division (2018)

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Soundtracks

Le sons et les parfums tournent dans l'air du soir
Performed by Jon Kull
Music by Claude Debussy

User Reviews

Good film , if not a little too over hyped.

The Usual Suspect is one of those films which tell you that seeing is believing. Don't get me wrong it was a very good film and I am glad I finally got the chance to see it but with critics going on and on about it, they kind of kill the magic of the movie. However that really did not hinder my enjoyment as I decided to treat this just like any other movie. Basic concept of 5 cons on various heist missions until one goes terribly wrong and then the authorities try to establish what went wrong hearing this from the account of one of the crippled crooks (Kevin Spacey). Gabreil Bryne was a excellent in his role as the lead crook and Benico Del Toro was also a stand out performance but we all know that Kevin Spacey was the man who took joy in playing the audience like a piano. A film can start of slow but the ending is the most important thing in the whole thing and I am glad to say that this ending was nothing short of a slap in the face.

THE USUAL SUSPECTS - 8.1 OUT 10

THE GREATEST TRICK THAT THE DEVIL EVER PULLED WAS CONVINCING THE WORLD THAT HE DOESN'T EXHIST AND JUST LIKE THAT..... HE'S GONE !

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA Germany

Language:

English Hungarian Spanish French

Release Date:

16 August 1995 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Usual Suspects

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$645,363, 20 August 1995

Gross USA:

$23,341,568

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$23,341,568

Company Credits

Production Co:

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment, Spelling Films International, Blue Parrot

Technical Specs

Runtime:

106 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1