From the pounding music by John Ottman (who also edited the movie) to the characters to the dialogue to the murder-mystery intrigue, The Usual Suspects gets everything right. Sporting one of the greatest endings in film history, this fast-paced crime thriller features solid performances, a completely engrossing plot, tons of suspense and even some great action sequences. When it comes to brain-twisting deception and absorbing machinations, The Usual Suspects is at the top of the list.

In present day San Pedro, California, 27 bodies turn up dead on a harbor battleground; sure-footed, cocky FBI Special Agent Dave Kujan (Chazz Palminteri) is determined to get to the bottom of it. Immediately he rounds up the “usual suspects,” a group of lowlifes, previous offenders, and generally scummy thugs who must have been involved – if it’s a big crime, they almost always are. The five men appear in a classic police lineup that would become the poster art and one of the most humorous scenes (originally intended to be serious, the takes always resulted in laughter from the cast). Kujan’s only means of finding out the truth revolves around two lone survivors – one, a badly burned Hungarian mobster who reveals that notorious Turkish narcotics criminal Keyser Soze was at the heart of it all (nobody’s ever seen him or worked directly for him and his entire existence is most likely a myth) - and Roger “Verbal” Kint (Kevin Spacey), a crippled, unintelligent, pushover, short con operator who gets caught up in a dastardly scheme for a few bucks and the chance to hang with the tough crowd.  The harsh, intimidating interrogation by Kujan forces Kint to reveal extra details left out of his testimony, even after the District Attorney granted immunity.

The chief suspects include Dean Keaton (Gabriel Byrne) a crooked cop who was kicked off the police force and claims to have turned straight. But the cops’ constant pressure and his frequent status as a suspect drives him back to crime. Michael McManus (Stephen Baldwin) is the loud-mouthed loose cannon, Fred Fenster (Benicio Del Toro) is the streetwise vehicle provider, and Todd Hockney (Kevin Pollak) is the weapons man - all petty crooks who band together for what should have been a simple, quick job for 5 guys – that turns into a string of dirty jobs until they find themselves working for Keyser Soze himself.

Who is Keyser Soze? It’s perhaps the most famous of all movie lineups and the most unforgettable series of unpredictable twists. The sarcastic dialogue, shady characters, and Kint’s narration present a perfectly noirish atmosphere that keeps you guessing until the very end. The story is told in flashback, with the opening scene determining the fate of the lead character. But the method in which the details are filled in, the characters introduced, and the relationships complicated, is so entertaining that the “why” and the “who” become far more thrilling than the “how.” The Usual Suspects is a highly impressive second film for Bryan Singer, who would go on to direct two X-Men films and a Superman movie; Suspects would win Best Screenplay and Best Supporting Actor Academy Awards (for Christopher McQuarrie and Kevin Spacey, respectively).

- Mike Massie

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