The Usual Suspects

About The Usual Suspects

The Usual Suspects is a 1995 American neo-noir film written by Christopher McQuarrie and directed by Bryan Singer. It stars Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Spacey, Chazz Palminteri, Stephen Baldwin, Benicio del Toro, Kevin Pollak and Pete Postlethwaite. The film tells the story of Roger "Verbal" Kint (Spacey), a small-time con man who is the subject of a police interrogation. He tells his interrogator, U.S. Customs Agent David Kujan (Palminteri), a convoluted story about events leading to a massacre and massive fire that have just taken place on a ship docked at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro Bay. Using flashback and narration, Verbal's story becomes increasingly complex as he tries to explain why he and his partners-in-crime were on the boat.

The film, shot on a $6 million budget, was initially released in few theaters, but received favorable reviews and was eventually given a wider release. McQuarrie won an Oscar for the screenplay and Spacey won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance.

On the deck of a ship in San Pedro, California, a figure identified as "Keyser" speaks with an injured man called Keaton (Byrne). Keaton attempts to destroy the ship by dropping his cigarette onto some spilled fuel, but his efforts are thwarted by Keyser. The two talk briefly before Keyser appears to shoot Keaton twice. Keyser then uses his own cigarette to set the ship ablaze as he makes his escape. The next day, FBI Agent Jack Baer (Giancarlo Esposito) and U.S. Customs special agent Dave Kujan arrive in San Pedro separately to investigate what happened on the boat. Dozens of men on the pier/boat are dead, and there appear to be only two survivors – a crippled man named Verbal Kint (Spacey), and a hospitalized Hungarian man identified as Arkosh Kovash, a known criminal. Baer visits the hospital and interrogates the Hungarian, who claims that Keyser Söze, a criminal mastermind with a nearly mythical reputation, was in the harbor "killing many men." Intrigued, Baer tells the police to call in Dan Metzheiser, a Department of Justice agent, who has pursued Söze. Metzheiser is at first dismissive until the Hungarian shouts out Söze's name in anger and fear. Metzheiser has the Hungarian describe Söze while a translator interprets and a police sketch artist draws a rendering of Söze's face. Verbal Kint tells the authorities everything he knows in exchange for immunity. After making his statement to the district attorney, Verbal is placed in a police station office where Kujan requests to hear the story again, from the beginning. Verbal's tale starts six weeks earlier: