Multi-Layered Full-Course Entertainment with Classic Heist Cinema's Mood

Rating: 6/10 (26 May 2004)

Within the classic heist cinema's earnest mood, The Usual Suspects multi-layers the full-course entertainment ingredients: a visually splendid waterfront explosion, a psychological tug-of-war between a suspect and an investigator, and a mystery regarding who the mastermind behind the crime is.
The film's atmosphere is not only classic but somewhat foreign. It may be a coincidence, but My Beautiful Launderette, a Channel 4 masterpiece in the 80s' UK, might have influenced The Usual Suspects for two components: implied homosexuality and a trick shot that someone behind the glass window functions as a mirror to reflect the person on the other side of the window.