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 #33 | 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:

surprise ending | criminal mastermind | criminal | suspect | unreliable narrator | 

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Taglines:

The truth is always in the last place you look.

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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

Jeff Bridges, Johnny Cash, Chris Cornell, Tommy Lee Jones, Charlie Sheen, James Spader and Christopher Walken were all offered the part of Redfoot, the L.A. fence.

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Goofs

(at around 12 mins) After the lineup scene when the characters are moved to the cell, as Fenster begins to pace back and forth, there is a silver microphone visible underneath the bench that Todd Hockney is laying on. Two seconds later it vanishes.

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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

When Redfoot hits McMannus with his cigarette, there is a reaction shot of Verbal looking surprised and scared. In the Special Edition it is changed to a reaction shot of Fenster.

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Connections

Referenced in The God of Cookery (1996)

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Soundtracks

Old MacDonald Had a Farm
(uncredited)
[Tradition American nursery rhyme first published in 1916]
Parody version performed by Stephen Baldwin

User Reviews

Not enough good things to say

Such films like this should be enshrined in museums, simply due to the fact it destroyed the entire genre of mystery films. While this film was unique and captivating, no other mystery will ever accomplish this sort of cult status, single handedly shaping a genre. While most mysteries try to shock you too often with twists and even more twists, it turns out to be overkill. This film encompassed such ideas with flair and originality, which is probably the reason Brian Singer is sticking to sci-fi action films. Only Memento and The Game are the only recent mystery movies worthy enough to stand beside this film. Sadly, Singer has somewhat sold out by doing the X-Men movies, but I guess trying to make films like this would be too taxing. This film will always bring a smile to my face when I watch it with someone who hasn't seen this movie. A good viewing every time I watch it, the new special edition DVD is awesome.

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