Right well thought I would start off by saying Merry Christmas to everyone out there and hope you all had a good one. I didn't quite manage a post on Christmas Eve or on Christmas Day so I thought I would do one today on Boxing day. And this one is not exactly a seasonal post but it will cover the neo-noir thriller film, The Usual Suspects, which was released all the way back in 1995 (nearly 20 years ago!). So let's give this one a look.....
So the film begins onboard a ship that is docked in San Pedro bay and a wounded man, Dean Keaton (Gabriel Byrne) who is approached by another man who's appearance is kept out of sight, but wears a coat and a hat and he asks Keaton if he is ready to die and takes out a gun and shoots him. The story then cuts to a court where a cripple, Roger "Verbal" Kint (Kevin Spacey) who is a small-time con-artist, gives a testimonial based on his involvement in the events leading up to what appears to be a massacre onboard the ship at the beginning of the film. Verbal then later tells the rest of the story to a Customs agent, Dave Kujan (Chazz Palminteri) in an office in a police station. The story is then told in flashback by Verbal, who was rounded by the New York City police along with four other men involved allegedly in a gun shipment robbery. The other men being Michael McManus (Stephen Baldwin) a professional thief, Fred Fenster (Benecio Del Toro) who is McManus's partner, Todd Hockey (Kevin Pollak) a hijacker and also Dean Keaton who was a former corrupt police officer. While they are being held in custody, McManus convinces the others to get back at the police by intercepting a smuggler who is escorted by corrupt cops and stealing his stash, which they carry out after their release, despsite Keaton's initial reluctance to get involved in crime again as he has tried to put that life behind him as he is now in a relationship with a lawyer, Edie Finnernan (Suzy Amis).
After the robbery they takes the goods to McManus's contact, Redfoot (Peter Greene) who tells them of another potential opportunity to make money in a smuggling operation. The men pull off the robbery but afterward they discover the shipment was cocaine and not jewelry. The men angrily confront Redfoot, who tells them he was given the job by a lawyer who works for someone unknown. Later on the men are approached by the lawyer, Kobayashi (Pete Postlethwaite) who says he works for the criminal mastermind, Keyser Soze and he tells them that they at some time or another stolen goods that belonged to Soze, but they were unaware of this and as such Soze wants them to do a job which involve destroying a large consigment of cocaine on a ship worth 91 million dollars, which will see a group of Argentinians sell the drugs to a Hungarian gang. Kobayashi also warns them however that if they do not carry out this task then their friends and families will be killed. Fenster then bails out from the group but is killed as a result and the other men are given an address sent by Kobayashi where they can find his body, where they bury him. Afterward they decide to kill Kobayashi and to take him hostage at his office but Kobayashi reveals that he is currently working with Edie on legal matters, and she will be killed if they do not complete the job, so with no choice the men decided to go ahead with the job. And this leads into the film's climax onboard the ship where the men get more than they bargained for and it eventually leads into the film's final plot twist.....
There is not much doubt that The Usual Suspects is something of a modern classic in itself and it remains a highly entertaining thriller that keeps the initial viewer guessing till the very end of the true identity of the film's main unseen antagonist, Keyser Soze. Even though it was actually Bryan Singer's third film, it was the one that brought him to the fore as a director in the public eye and it kick started his career in Hollywood. Singer himself came up with the idea for the film's title from a column he read in Spy magazine called "The Usual Suspects" which Singer thought would be a good title for the film (the line itself was originally taken from the classic film Casablanca). The film also has a great script, which was written by Christopher McQuarrie, who formerly worked at a detective agency and he used his knowledge of working in that role in his depiction of the criminals and law enforcement in the film. The character Keyser Soze was also based on the real life events of a criminal, John List, who was an accountant from New Jersey who killed his family and disappeared, changing his identity and Singer also said the name came from one Singer's former bosses named Kayser Sume, but he changed the surname to Soze, which is Turkish and the translation is "talk too much". So overall its a very cleverly put together film.
Getting onto the performances section of the review, they are all great and a top cast would be needed to do the film's script justice, which they sure do. Starting with Kevin Spacey, who won an Academy Award for his performance as Verbal Kint, and is great in his role as the somewhat ambiguous character that he is. Spacey has various highlights in the film such as the scene during the police lineup (where they actors are cracking up for real in this scene!) where they are giving a card which has the words on it "hand me the keys you fucking cocksucker" and Spacey as Kint says it last and he says it in quite a sinister way "hand me the keys you fucking cocksucker!". Spacey as Kint appears to be a weak and fairly mild mannered character but there is always an underlying sense of authority to the way he talks. Spacey does have some fun moments in the film such as the scene where he drinks a cup of coffee at the police station and he says to Dave Kujan "Back when I picking beans in Guatemala, we used to make fresh coffee, right off the trees I mean. That was good. This is shit, but hey I'm in a police station!". Then there is the scene where Verbal meets with Keaton at Keaton's apartment, who grabs Verbal and punches him in the gut, but apologises afterward and Verbal painfully limps and sits down on the stair of his living room and says "I'll probably shit blood tonight!". Another good scene is where Verbal explains to Kujan who Keyser Soze was and he says "He is supposed to be Turkish. Some say his father was German. Nobody believed he was real. Nobody ever saw him or knew anybody that worked directly for him, but to hear Kobayashi tell it, anybody could have worked for Soze. You never knew. That was his power. The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist. And like that, poof! He's gone!". And then there is the scene where Verbal says to Kujan "Keaton always said "I don't believe in God, but I'm afraid of him". Well I believe in God and the only thing that scares me is Keyser Soze". And later where Verbal pleads with Kujan to believe him as to why he didn't shoot Soze at the harbour when he saw him from afar and Verbal says "It was Keyser Soze, Agent Kujan, I mean the devil himself! How do you shoot the devil in the back??? What if you miss??".
Gabriel Byrne is also great in his part as the former corrupt cop, Dean Keaton, who tries but fails to go straight and he lured back into the criminal world by Verabl and the others. Byrne also has some great moments in the film such as the scene where he is questioned by the police at the start of the film and he says to the officers interrogating him "Now you charge me with this shit, and I'll beat it! OK?!". Then there is the scene where Keaton searches the docked ship near the end of the film and he meets with McManus and angrily tells him there is no coke onboard the ship "There's no coke!" and McManus doesn't believe him and Keaton again says "I told you, you dumb fuck there's no coke onboard! I looked everywhere! THERE IS NO FUCKING COKE!!". Another good scene is where Keaton and the other men are in the holding cell and as McManus tries to get the other men interested in his plan to get back at the cops, Keaton says to him "Why don't you just shut up? I don't want to hear anything you have to say, and I don't want anything to do with any of you. Pardon me for saying this, but as far as I'm concerned you can all go to hell". And then there is scene later on in the film where the men find Fenster's dead body and Keaton says to the others "You want payback? You wanna run? I don't care! I'm not doing this for Fenster, I'm not doing it for you....I'm doing it for me. I'm gonna finish this thing! This Kobayashi bastard is not gonna stand on me!" as he starts to dig his hands into the sand to create a hole to bury Fenster's body and the others start to join him.
Chazz Palminteri also provides a fine performance as the customs agent Dave Kujan, who has been investigating Dean Keaton and questions Verbal at a police station. Palminteri's hightlights include the scene where Kujan tells Verbal about Keaton and his track record for police corruption and "Dean Keaton was dead. Did you know that? He died in a fire two years ago during the investigation into the murder of a witness who was going to testify against him. Two people watched Dean Keaton walk into a warehouse he owned just before it blew up. They said he went in to check a leaking gas main. It blew up and took all of Dean Keaton with it. Within three months of the explosion, the two witnesses, they were dead. One killed himself in his car, the other fell down an open elevator shaft". Then there is the scecne where Kujan grows angry at Verbal for not telling him what he wants and he angry pushes him and as Verbal says he's got immunity, Kujan says "Not from me! You get no immunity from me you piece of shit! Every criminal I have put in prison, every cop that owes me a favour, every creep and scumbag that walks the streets for a living will know the name of Verbal Kint. Now you talk to me, or that precious immunity they seem to grant you won't be worth the paper the contract on your life is printed on!". And last of all there is the scene just before the end of the film where after Verbal has been released, Kujan sits apparently content about what he has learned from Verbal. But as Kujan sits with a coffee cup in his hand, something catches his eye on the office's busy billboard, which causes him to drop his coffee cup, which smashes into pieces and he races out the office being hit by a revelation which reveals the film's twist.
Getting onto the other performances, Stephen Baldwin is pretty good in his role as McManus, who is a bit of a loose canon and one of the five men in the lineup. Baldwin also some good moments in the film such as the lineup scene where he provides a funny momeny where he delivers the line he has been given in a comical manner as he yells like he comic bad guy "GIVE ME THE FUCKIN KEYS YOU COCKSUCKA MOTHERFUCKAA!!". Another good moment for Baldwin is the scene where the men find Fenster's body and he tells Hockney, whom doesn't get on with McManus to help bury him and he says "Dig, you fuck!". And in the same scene Hockey tells McManus to go fuck himself and McMaus says to Hockney "He was my friend and together we did more jobs and made more money than you ever could dream so FUCK YOU!!! Cos now its payback!". Then there is the scene where the men are in the holding cell and McManus teases Keaton about his relationship with Edie Finnernan, who is a lawyer and he says "What kind of retainer are you givin her?". And lastly there is the scene where onboard the ship, McManus has some of the drug gang in his sights on a sniper rifle and he quietly says "Oooo McDonald had a farm, ee i ee i o. And on that farm he shot some guys! Badda boom badda bing bing boom!".
Kevin Pollak is also pretty good in his role as the sarcy and smart-assed Hockeny, who Verbal at one point describes in his narration as "the one guy who could not give a fuck about anybody!". And Pollak also some good scenes in the film and his first scene is a good introduction where the cops come for Hockney at a garage where he works, and Hockey in the scene slowly reaches down for a rag to wipe his face and the cops nervously aims their guns at him yelling no to move, and Hockney says "Are you sure you brought enough guys???". Pollak also has another good moment in the holding cell where Hockney asks "I wanna know who's the gimp?" as he refers to Verbal, who sits quietly and he says "What about it Pretzel man, what's your story?" and Keaton tells him his name is Verbal Kint. And as Verbal says "Roger, people say I talk too much" Hockney quips "yeah I was just about to tell you to shut up!". Pollak notably in the film also had a bit of onscreen and offscreen tension with Stephen Baldwin (who is a bit of an arsehole anyway in real life!) and there a few scenes where we see it, such as the scene where Hockney is annoyed at McManus holding out on them meeting with his contact, and Hockey angrily looks at McManus and says "You wanna dance??!". And finally one of Pollak's funniest moments comes in the scene where Hockney is questioned by the police and he says to one of them "I'm gonna have your badge, cocksucker!" and one of them asks him what happens if he doesn another turn in the joint, Hockney replies "Fuck your father in the shower and have a snack?! You gonna charge me dickhead?".
And the last few cast members I will mention are firstly Benecio Del Toro, who is at times hilarious in his role as the eccentric Fenster. Del Toro sprouts a pretty funny hairdo and wears some outlandish styled suits and he get's some of the film's funniest moments and he also affects a pretty unusual accent. And this is best put to use in the lineup scene where Fenster has to say the same line as the other men, but because of his accent, he is told by one of the officers to speak "In English!" and he says the line again "Hand me the keys you cocksucker, what the fuck?!". Another funny moment from Del Toro is where Fenster is questioned by the cops and as he says he doesn't know anything about a stolen truck, they say that McManus told them a different story and Fenster says "Oh yeah, is that the one about the hooker with dysentery?!" and also he says to the cops how "He'll flip ya, flip ya for real!".
Pete Postlethwaite who provides a good performance as Soze's lawyer, Kobayashi, and Pete adopts a rather bizzare Indian sounding accent for the role, which makes his character unique in itself. Pete's scenes in the film are also excellent particularly in his first scene where he explains to the men their unknown involvement in having stolen from Soze in the past. And he says to the men "That you did not know you have stolen from Mr Soze is the only reason you are still alive. He feels you owe him. You will repay your debt". And later as McManus prepares to shoot Kobayashi, the lawyer tells them he is working with Edie Finernan, Keaton's girlfriend, and in no uncertain terms that basically they have no choice but to do the job. "Get some rest gentlemen. If I see you or any of your friends before then, Miss Finnernan will find herself the victim of a most gruesome violation before she dies. As will your father, Mr Hockney, and your Uncle Randall in Arizona, Mr Kint. I might only castrate Mr McManus's nephew, David. Do I make myself clear??". Nice fella.
And last of all is Peter Greene who provides a good cameo as Redfoot, McManus's contact and he get's two great lines, the first being when McManus angrily confronts Redfoot by throwing a stolen pack of drugs at him "What am I supposed to do with that?!" say McManus and Redfoot says "I dunno. Feed it to the gimp!" and he throws it at Verbal (the line itself is a neat reference to Greene's own character from Pulp Fiction, Z, the redneck biker who says "bring out the gimp!"). And near the end of the scene when McManus says to Redfoot "If you try anything else and I'm gonna kill you!" and Redfoot says "Such a tough guy, McManus. Why don't you do me a favour: get the fuck off my dick!" and he pings his cigarette at McManus's eye!
Finally moving onto Bryan Singer, who does a stellar job here with the film and he paces it out to perfection as at just over 1 hour and 40 minutes it is as tight as a drum. Singer also handles the film's suspense effortlessly well and keeps you guessing as to what is really going on as the film approach's its end. And last of all I will mention John Ottman's music score which is very good and is also quite suspenseful and atmospheric in places. Ottman also was the film's editor and he regularly collaborates with Singer as Singer's main composer.
As for flaws..... well The Usual Suspects doesn't really have many worth niggling over as its perfectly paced, very well acted and it has a great script which is well thought and doesn't have too many glaring flaws. The only thing I would say is that Verbal's character is a bit annoying as he appears to be a bit too meek, yet you must know there is something up with this guy and if you think about it why would Keyser Soze bother sparing this guy, who was the weakest link of the group of men??? And that's where the film's twist becomes a bit more apparent but to be fair only really after you have seen it once. Verbal's reference to the Keyser Soze as the devil is also a bit cheesy in a way and it remains one of the film's very few cheesy lines where Verbal pleads with Kujan to listen to him as to why he didn't shoot Soze and he says "I mean it was Keyzer Soze, the devil himself!". And in the end the film leaves Keyser Soze as a character as being open to interpretation and who is to say whom he really is? Is the ending of the film really what has happened? Well it would appear so but who knows as in the press and even Kevin Spacey and other actors have mused that Keyser Soze isn't necessarily who he is shown to be at the end of the film and just maybe the man seen on the ship in the dock could have been someone else working on behalf of Soze also. You might aswell ask who is the real Stig on Top Gear when it could be a number of people! Anyways let's not get too deep into that one as you might aswell except the identity of Keyser Soze at the end of the film as it is shown.
So that's it for my look at The Usual Suspects, which is still an excellent crime thriller to this very day and is still worth a watch if you haven't seen it in a while (or if not at all, get on to it!).
And I will be back soon with another post.
Bye for now. Merry Christmas!
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