Chiasmus cult cinema trailers - "The Usual Suspects" (1995). *These will be ongoing posts, courtesy of the A.Glass DVD collection. As I offer via Chiasmus Cult trailers, my summarized overviews*

The truth is stranger than frictional crime noir thriller, "The Usual Suspects" (1995), directed by Bryan Singer and written by Christopher McQuarrie stands as one of the most intriguing, entertaining and riveting crime drama's of the 1990s.  And essentially a movie about reworking truth to fit a narrative, when the story itself, on how the movie was devised, is actually the backstory of the movie in itself.  In the sense, both Singer and McQuarrie were able to assemble an array of words, and symbolism from movies, former employment, actual crime, popular culture to develop the storyline.

And this is what makes The Usual Suspects so captivating, less than a whodunnit, more of a manipulation of criminal events by the main protagonist "Roger 'Verbal' Kint", played by Kevin Spacey, as a physically 'disabled' conman, the only survivor from a line up of criminals, who were set all up by the mythical master criminal, "Keyser Söze", and happens to be, yes spoiler alert, Verbal Kint.   All this described in intricate detail by Kint to "Agent Dave Kujan", played with an enthralling conviction by Chazz Palminteri, as he tries to decode the series of events, after the 'fact', to which Kint has described to the District Attorney whilst being granted immunity.  As he, Kujan is desperately trying to pin it altogether to blame ex-cop, turned criminal "Dean Keaton", played by Irish actor Gabriel Byrne, for the end shoot out on a ship, docked at San Pedro bay, killing everybody sans Kint.  Who is being interrogated by Kujan, allows the detective to create the story he wants to hear, by filling in the blanks.  Confused?

The genius of the script and the way it is portrayed by the actors, in its patchwork of truth and fiction for over One hour and Seventy minutes, and how it can be, if skilled enough, suit the narrative of misdirection.  Showcasing the masterfulness of Kevin Spacey's character, which is "Keyser Söze", over the "smarter than you"  (Agent Dave Kujan's line in the movie) directed at Söze.  With Söze twisting factual events and stories within a mythological prose, while reading the pin board behind where Kujan is sitting.  Utilizing names and events from the scraps of paper, products, note "Kobayashi" as the name of the mysterious lawyer, who works for Söze, taken from a porcelain coffee mug.

Yes, "The Usual Suspects" does have many, many plot holes, and some filming errors, including a plane changing into a different type whilst landing at JFK airport, yet this adds to the confusing charm of the movie, considering it was filmed on a low budget of just $6 million.  The script does hold together, thanks to the actors, and the conclusion of the movie does make sense, in its jumbled up way.  Revealing, that truth can be redefined, and myth has always been used to offer an answer.  Even if it is incorrect or a conspiracy theory. 

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(A.Glass 2025)

All CHIAMUS Cult Cinema trailers/commentary to date: chiasmusmagazine.blogspot.com/search/label/Chiasmus%20cult%20cinema