Undoubtedly a remarkable piece of work

Rating: 9/10 (8 October 2001)

There seems to be little debate between movie critics that The Usual Suspects is one of the great works of the decade and, finally seeing it for myself, I found out why.
The Usual Suspects has very little wrong with it. Bryan Singer's direction is flawless, and it is accented by a host of outstanding performances all round. The characters are well written with significant development, and an outstanding aura of mistrust for each other in a time when they really should pull together. Spacey and Palminteri play a great double act as the witness/interrogator, which provides the narrative for the film.
The narrative itself is very well thought out, giving the audience just enough information to not leave them completely in the dark, but not giving them too much, in order to keep them guessing. The relatively complex plot could have easily gone astray with an overly complex narrative, but that doesn't happen.
The films main most powerful asset does lie in the well documented ending, which superbly edits together audio and visual effects to let the audience's jaw drop to the floor with disbelief. It is a truly brilliant piece of storytelling and film making, and will no doubt inspire a new wave of inadequate copycats.
All in all, The Usual Suspects is a triumph for anyone involved with it, but maybe just lacks a little something to earn it full marks.
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