The Usual Suspects (1995) - Best Crime Thriller | Filmiway
Why This Crime Thriller Hits Hard
An extraordinary exploration of crime, justice, and the darkness within humanity.
The Usual Suspects
The Experience
A crippled con artist named Verbal Kint (Kevin Spacey) recounts to authorities how he and four other criminals met, formed an uneasy alliance, and became entangled with the mythical crime lord Keyser Söze. But as the story unfolds through flashbacks, every detail becomes suspect. Bryan Singer's legendary thriller builds to one of cinema's most shocking reveals—a twist that recontextualizes everything.
Cast & Crew
Director: Bryan Singer
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio del Toro
Production Details
Budget: $6 million
Box Office: $23.3 million
CRIME INTENSITY SCORE
Accessible complexity with subtle mind-bending elements rewarding careful viewing.
Content Advisory
Contains: Mature Content
📊INTENSITY GRAPHIntensity GraphShows plot intensity
throughout the movie. Higher peaks
indicate more intense moments.
throughout the movie. Higher peaks
indicate more intense moments.
🧬CINEMATIC DNAGenre DNA BreakdownVisual representation of the movie's
genre composition. Larger segments
indicate dominant genre elements.
genre composition. Larger segments
indicate dominant genre elements.
Genre DNA Distribution
- Crime: 50%
- Mystery: 40%
- Thriller: 10%
Movie Intensity Arc
- Minute 15: The Lineup (45/100 Intensity)
- Minute 42: Planning the Job (65/100 Intensity)
- Minute 78: The Boat (80/100 Intensity)
- Minute 92: Keyser Söze Revealed (90/100 Intensity)
- Minute 104: The Walk (97/100 Intensity)
Community Reviews
Frequently Asked Questions About The Usual SuspectsFAQ About The Usual Suspects
Common questions about The Usual Suspects and this gripping crime thriller.
Who is Keyser Söze in The Usual Suspects?
SPOILER: Keyser Söze is revealed to be Verbal Kint (Kevin Spacey), the seemingly weak, crippled con artist telling the story. The entire narrative Verbal tells customs agent Kujan is fabricated, with details pulled from objects in the office. The film's legendary twist recontextualizes everything we've seen.
What does 'Keyser Söze' mean?
In the film's mythology, Keyser Söze is a near-mythical Turkish crime lord whose name inspires terror across the criminal underworld. The name roughly translates to 'emperor' in Turkish. Söze's legend involves killing his own family to prove he feared nothing—a story that may itself be just another lie Verbal invents.
How was the twist ending of The Usual Suspects kept secret?
Director Bryan Singer shot alternate scenes and kept the true twist from most of the cast. Even Gabriel Byrne didn't know the ending during filming. Kevin Spacey was one of the few who knew from the start. The screenplay's final pages were kept under tight security, and early test screenings shocked audiences who couldn't predict the reveal.
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Curated by Filmiway Editorial Team
Expert analysis of crime cinema