The Usual Suspects (1995)
Average Rating: 7.6/10
Reviews Counted: 55
Fresh: 49 | Rotten: 6
Expertly shot and edited, The Usual Suspects gives the audience a simple plot and then piles on layers of deceit, twists, and violence before pulling out the rug from underneath.
Average Rating: 6.9/10
Critic Reviews: 18
Fresh: 15 | Rotten: 3
Expertly shot and edited, The Usual Suspects gives the audience a simple plot and then piles on layers of deceit, twists, and violence before pulling out the rug from underneath.
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Average Rating: 4.2/5
User Ratings: 385,169
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Movie Info
Near the end of The Usual Suspects, Kevin Spacey, in his Oscar-winning performance as crippled con man Roger "Verbal" Kint, says, "The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." This may be the key line in this story; the farther along the movie goes, the more one realizes that not everything is quite what it seems, and what began as a conventional whodunit turns into something quite different. A massive explosion rips through a ship in a San Pedro, CA,
Aug 16, 1995 Wide
Dec 9, 1999
Gramercy Pictures
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Cast
-
Gabriel Byrne
Dean Keaton -
Stephen Baldwin
McManus -
Chazz Palminteri
Dave Kujan -
Kevin Pollak
Todd Hockney -
Pete Postlethwaite
Kobayashi -
Kevin Spacey
Roger "Verbal" Kint -
Benicio Del Toro
Fred Fenster -
Dan Hedaya
Jeff Rabin -
Suzy Amis
Edie Finneran -
Paul Bartel
Smuggler -
Billy Bates
Bodyguard -
Michelle Clunie
Sketch Artist -
Vito D'Ambrosio
Arresting Officer -
Giancarlo Esposito
Jack Baer -
Christine Estabrook
Dr. Plummer -
Clark Gregg
Dr. Walters -
Castulo Guerra
Arturro Marquez -
Morgan Hunter
Arkosh Kovash -
Gene Lythgow
Cop on Pier -
David Powladge
Bodyguard -
Jack Shearer
Renault -
Bert Williams
Old Cop -
Carl Bressler
Saul Berg -
Phillip Simon
Fortier -
Frank Medrano
Rizzi -
Louis Lombardi
Strausz -
Peter Greene
Redfoot (uncredited)
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All Critics (55) | Top Critics (18) | Fresh (61) | Rotten (6) | DVD (39)
For many true movie fiends, noir is the key American movie type, and the most fun when it's done right. The Usual Suspects is done right.
Top CriticI didn't believe this story for a minute, even in movie terms -- though it's less offensive than a piece of junk like Apt Pupil, Singer's subsequent feature.
A terrific cast of exciting actors socks over this absorbingly complicated yarn that's been spun in seductively slick fashion by director Bryan Singer.
Singer creates a classy, thought-provoking mystery that is pleasingly old-fashioned and absolutely modern in the sly, slightly self-conscious play it makes with myth and methods of storytelling.
This movie finally isn't anything more than an intricate feat of gamesmanship, but it's still quite something to see.
The Usual Suspects is the freshest, funniest and scariest crime thriller to come along since Pulp Fiction.
A masterpiece of the modern film noir genre, a terrific performance piece for everyone involved and an absolutely outstanding directorial effort.
Overpraised though it is, Bryan Singer's twisty debut is still worth a look on Blu-ray for both its minor, diabolical pleasures and the solid job MGM has done on the transfer.
While it's fair to call The Usual Suspects a gimmick in search of a movie, one could say something similar of, say, an Agatha Christie mystery. [Blu-ray]
Anything but usual, Singer's movie is pretty damn near untouchable. Next to this, most other crime films feel petty.
Screenwriter Christopher McQuarrie's tough-guy dialogue and Bryan Singer's crisp direction give the ensemble cast every opportunity to shine, and they do.
Bryan Singer's poker face is worthless at best.
Profane, violent crime thriller has novel twists.
This movie stands up under (and even invites) multiple viewings.
Stylishly made but narratively hollow and dramatically derivative, Bryan Singer's neo-noir puzzle owes its existence to Tarantino.
To many young film buffs, this is where film history begins and ends.
McQuarrie's script is a scurrying lizard of a yarn, scaly, swift and difficult to follow.
If ever a movie got extra points for a strong, unexpected conclusion it's The Usual Suspects.
Not to be believed for a NYC second.
No one is out of place or out of line here, and that is what makes the final payoff so sweet.
Audience Reviews for The Usual Suspects
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
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- McManus: I sucked in Slap Shot 2 and I'm even worse in this movie.
-
- Roger "Verbal" Kint: Are you trying to get a rise out of me, Agent Kujan?
-
- Dave Kujan: You're in the getting-fucked-by-us business.
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- Dean Keaton: Do your friend a favor. Tell him to keep quiet.
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- Roger "Verbal" Kint: The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.
-
- Roger "Verbal" Kint: How do you shoot the devil in the back? What if you miss?
Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| Roger Ebert actually put this on his "Most Hated" list... | 58 days ago | 1 |
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