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The Usual Suspects
- Review Date: June 18, 2008
- R
- Genre: Thriller
- 1995
Common Sense Media says
Profane, violent crime thriller has novel twists.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that there is an abundance of obscene language, the F-word most prominent. Violence gets pretty severe too. In a flashback (which may not reflect actual events) children and a mother are murdered by their own husband/father. There is an overwhelming sense of film noir-style corruption, and even the police don't look terribly clean.
What's the story?
A favorite "guy movie" for its cool crook-talk dialog (filled with swearing) and breathtaking twist at the end, THE USUAL SUSPECTS starts with the finale of a mass-murder/explosion on board a boat in San Pedro, California. Flashbacks and divergent timelines -- and it is rather confusing at first -- fill in the story, as a police detective questions one of the few survivors, a crippled, wimpy con-artist named Verbal (Kevin Spacey). He claims that he and the dead men were all part of an outlaw band centered on Dean Keaton (Gabriel Byrne), a former New York City cop turned career criminal. Lured to the West Coast for a job, the victims were told they had offended a legendary international outlaw named Keyser Soze, a figure so shadowy he may or may not even exist, and much unsolved malice and mayhem surrounds him. The police are skeptical that nervous, rabbity Verbal could possibly be involved with Keyser Soze, let alone survive a close encounter. But then...
Is it any good?
Though it's a story without any "good" guys, in most any sense (one female character, who seems to represent possible redemption, is very marginal and gets coldly killed offscreen), The Usual Suspects remains a transfixing and convoluted film noir thriller that forces the viewer to think through events, maybe watch the movie a second time, to see where the filmmakers and their narrative fooled you. It does paint a picture of a pretty violent world, though, and the degree to which there's any philosophy or morality at work comes from Verbal Klint, who observes that Keyser Soze succeeds because he's willing to go farther and be meaner than other gangsters, and that, moreover, he's like the devil, "whose greatest trick was convincing the world that he didn't exist."
The mythic Soze works his ruthless will through unwitting dupes and hirelings, always staying in the background -- not unlike Voldemort from the Harry Potter tales. Unlike Potter, though, profanity is so thick here you'd swear the ship blows up at the start because of the heavy concentration of f-bombs.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about why this film has become so popular. Did you see the trick ending coming? Do you want to watch it a second time, knowing how it comes out? You could use this movie to turn kids onto tricky crime thrillers of yesteryear, going all the way back to The Maltese Falcon, Kiss Me Deadly, The Lady from Shanghai, and The Big Sleep (which didn't have to swear to hold viewers spellbound). What does the film say about the criminal mindset and power? "Keyser Soze," is the all-powerful crime lord who may not really exist and who is feared like an underworld boogeyman. Can you think of real-life parallels in the realms of the Mafia and international terrorism?
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AGE
Perfect for Mature Audiences Only
Awesome Movie with an amazing twist at the end. Language is extremely used frequently and some violence invovled including a very brief scene of rape.
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Kid, 12 years old
August 30, 2011
AGE
the usual suspects
this film has an amazingly good plot but may be a bit complicated for some and the language is pretty bad it is a bit violent but nothing you could not handle the twist ending is awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and like that poof hes gone
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AGE
Impressive, Well-Cast Thriller Has an Infamous Character and an Excellent Twist
This may be the definition of magnificent twists and build-up. Granted, a website had already spoiled the infamous twist to me (which I was very upset about), yet I highly enjoyed the film nonetheless. Now, of course I won't spoil the amazing twist, for I want you to enjoy it. There is a lot of language, some graphic shootings (including an ending shootout), and a mostly off-screen rape, yet this film is fairly tame for an R-rated film. Please watch this movie; you won't regret it.
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AGE
A Must Watch for Movie Lovers
I understand that there are orthodox, carefully minded parents out there that don't want their kids/teens watching things with violence and profanity, and I realize that f*** is used 90 times, a somewhat high amount, but you have to realize that if a kid hears the word once in a movie, they can hear it again. And I realize that violence is an issue for a lot of families, but if a kid is okay with blood, they can handle this movie. The one major problem that I had with this movie was the rape scene, and if my parents, some very careful, worrisome parents, were able to sit and watch it with me in the room. Just be sure that if you have ADHD or ADD prone kids, ones with shorter attention spans, don't bother sitting through this movie with them, they will just be distracted. Also, the only reason I put too much drugs is that the pot of the movie revolves around them, so to watch it, you must first deal with it. Just be sure to enjoy the movie, preferably late at night in the dark.
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AGE
Excellent thriller features language, some violence.
"The Usual Suspects" is an amazing thriller, not just because of its superb ending (no spoilers), but also because of its great actors (Oscar-winning performance of Kevin Spacey), its terrific dialogues, John Ottman's wonderful soundtrack and Brian Synger's directing skills.
But, of course, also because of the ending.
It is the language that caused the R-Rating, so if your child can handle language, i can't see any problem. There are exactly 98 f-words. The violence is not strong - a few people get shot, though with blood spurts, but nothing pushing a PG-13. Suitable and recommended for viewers 12 and up.
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AGE
Great movie, actually not that bad 4 kids
great movie but there isnt actually all that much swearing and the only truly bad violent moment is fuzzy, stylized and very, very blurry
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AGE
this movie is so amazing there's violence and a lot of language but there's a twist that you wont ever forget but just make sure you stick to the end you-ll be happy i say if mature 14 and up.
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AGE
Loved it!!
Usual Suspects is my favorite movie by a long shot, and has been since the moment I first sat down to watch it. True, there's a certain amound of drugs and violence, but once you watch the movie you realize [SPOILER] how little of it actually happened in the plot versus how much Verbal Kint made up on the spot. Keyser Soze may have never been in Turkey, he may have never even had a wife to be raped, he might not have ever been involved in narcotics, and the five criminals may have never even gone to california and killed those people in the dope deal. By the end of the movie you know so much less than you think you do about the plot. So technically, there were never any narcotics, rape, murder, mafia-like cults... it was just one guy making up stories to tell the police. Sure that's a bad message for kids, encouraging dishonesty, but the movie itself has so many subtle details that it can only help your kids' mental maturity by trying to figure out just what is real and what isn't. It inspired my daughter to do her own independant research about the basis of the movie! She found out that "Keyser Soze" is Turkish for "King Blabbermouth" which is oddly like Verbal Kint, eh? I've never seen my daughter get so passionate about anything, and any movie that can bring out such fervid excitement in a 13-year-old is great by me.
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AGE
MASTERPIECE
This film has possibly the best ending ever.Kevin Spacey gives a spectacular performance.
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| Studio: | MGM/UA |
| Director: | Bryan Singer |
| Cast: | Benicio Del Toro, Gabriel Byrne, Stephen Baldwin |
| Genre: | Thriller |
| Run time: | 106 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | August 16, 1995 |
| DVD release date: | April 2, 2002 |
| MPAA rating: | R |
| MPAA explanation: | violence and a substantial amount of strong language |
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