I'm torn about The Usual Suspects. Although I know it is an exceptionally enjoyable film, and infintely re-watchable, i still cant get over what I believe was a cheat at the end.
On my first viewing, I walked out of the theater thinking that even though I enjoyed the film, I felt duped. The RESULT of the duplicicity is completly perfect, but the facts leading to that reveal screwed with me. The stuff that stuck with me about the bulletin board and office materials reveal was less about changing names (like Kobayashi, since that person existed) and more like the barbershop quartet in Skokie, IL, which doesnt reference anything at all, and, as JLAR referenced, the question of Redfoot's existence. If Redfoot is just different name, then that could be OK, but is it possible he doesn't exist at all? We'll never know. And I don't need the answer, it's that the question leads to other questions, which leads to what in Verbal's story matters and what doesn't?
Listening to this podcast, it led me to remember another film that gave me this same feeling as I watched the end unfold and would follow me out of the theater and forever after: The Perfect Storm. Just as the end of Usual Suspects made me feel as though everything I had seen was a lie, Perfect Storm was an actual lie. (Spoilers on 16 yr. old film) How can there be any story after they leave the port if no one survived?
So, these two very well made films, which are very easy to watch and enjoy, are still based on lies. And in The Usual Suspects case, the twist relies on unreliable information. So for me this film will always be saddled with that bad feeling, which ultimately means I have to vote No.
And I'll probably shit blood tonight.
Edited to add: The Usual Suspects is streaming now on Netflix.
