Editing The Usual Suspects (section)

== Reception ==
===Critical response===
On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], ''The Usual Suspects'' has received a rating of 87%, based on 83 reviews, with an average rating of 7.80/10. The site's consensus reads, "Expertly shot and edited, ''The Usual Suspects'' gives the audience a simple plot and then piles on layers of deceit, twists, and violence before pulling out the rug from underneath."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/usual_suspects/ |title=The Usual Suspects |website=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=March 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227133550/https://rottentomatoes.com/m/usual_suspects|archive-date=December 27, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> On [[Metacritic]], the film has a score of 77 out of 100, based on 22 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-usual-suspects |title=The Usual Suspects |work=Metacritic|access-date=July 4, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191005151333/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-usual-suspects|archive-date=October 5, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Roger Ebert]], in a review for the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]],'' gave the film one-and-a-half stars out of four, writing that it was confusing and uninteresting: "To the degree that I do understand, I don't care."<ref>{{cite news |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |date=August 18, 1995 |title=''The Usual Suspects'' |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-usual-suspects-1995 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426171724/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-usual-suspects-1995 |archive-date=April 26, 2020 |access-date=May 18, 2020 |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |via=rogerebert.com}}</ref> He also included the film in his "most hated films" list.<ref>{{cite news |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |date=August 11, 2005 |title=Ebert's Most Hated |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/roger-ebert/eberts-most-hated |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200614235424/https://www.rogerebert.com/roger-ebert/eberts-most-hated |archive-date=June 14, 2020 |access-date=May 18, 2020 |work=Chicago Sun-Times |via=rogerebert.com}}</ref> ''[[USA Today]]'' rated the film two-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it "one of the most densely plotted mysteries in memory—though paradoxically, four-fifths of it is way too easy to predict."<ref>{{cite news |last=Clark |first=Mike |title=''Usual Suspects,'' usual thriller |work=USA Today |date=August 18, 1995}}</ref>

''[[Rolling Stone]]'' praised Spacey, saying his "balls-out brilliant performance is [[Oscar bait]] all the way."<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Travers |first=Peter |title=''The Usual Suspects'' |magazine=Rolling Stone |year=1995 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/the-usual-suspects-19950816 |access-date=September 27, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714073134/http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/the-usual-suspects-19950816|archive-date=July 14, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> In his review for ''[[The Washington Post]]'', [[Hal Hinson]] wrote: {{cquote|Ultimately, ''The Usual Suspects'' may be too clever for its own good. The twist at the end is a corker, but crucial questions remain unanswered. What's interesting, though, is how little this intrudes on our enjoyment. After the movie you're still trying to connect the dots and make it all fit—and these days, how often can we say that?<ref>{{cite news |last=Hinson |first=Hal |author-link=Hal Hinson |date=August 18, 1995 |title=''Usual Suspects'', Unusual Suspense |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>}}

In her review for ''[[The New York Times]]'', [[Janet Maslin]] praised the performances of the cast: {{cquote|Mr. Singer has assembled a fine ensemble cast of actors who can parry such lines, and whose performances mesh effortlessly despite their exaggerated differences in demeanor ... Without the violence or obvious bravado of ''[[Reservoir Dogs]],'' these performers still create strong and fascinatingly ambiguous characters.<ref>{{cite news |last=Maslin |first=Janet |author-link=Janet Maslin |date=August 16, 1995 |title=Putting Guys Like That in a Room Together |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/08/16/movies/film-review-putting-guys-like-that-in-a-room-together.html |access-date=January 1, 2025 |work=The New York Times}}</ref>}} ''[[The Independent]]'' praised the film's ending: "The film's [[coup de grace]] is as elegant as it is unexpected. The whole movie plays back in your mind in perfect clarity—and turns out to be a completely different movie to the one you've been watching (rather better, in fact)."<ref>{{cite news |last=Curtis |first=Quentin |title=The thrill of ''The Usual Suspects'' is that it re-mythologises the crime movie |work=The Independent |date=August 27, 1995}}</ref>

=== Accolades ===
{{Anchor|Awards|Accolades}}
At the [[68th Academy Awards]], [[Kevin Spacey]] won the [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor]] and [[Christopher McQuarrie]] won the [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay]]. In his acceptance speech, Spacey said, "Well, whoever Keyser Söze is, I can tell you he's gonna get gloriously drunk tonight."<ref name="grimes">{{cite news |last=Grimes |first=William |author-link=William Grimes (journalist) |date=March 26, 1996 |title=Gibson Best Director for ''Braveheart'', Best Film |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/26/movies/gibson-best-director-for-braveheart-best-film.html |access-date=January 1, 2025 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
! Award
! Category
! Nominee(s)
! Result
! {{Ref heading}}
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[68th Academy Awards|Academy Awards]]
| [[Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| [[Kevin Spacey]]
| {{won}}
| rowspan="2" align="center"| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1996 |title=The 68th Academy Awards (1996) Nominees and Winners |access-date=October 21, 2011 |publisher=[[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20141109195142/http://www.oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/1996 |archive-date=November 9, 2014}}</ref><br> <ref name="indiespirit">{{cite web |title=The Usual Suspects: Awards |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114814/awards/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528172707/http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0114814/awards?ref_=tt_ql_4 |archive-date=May 28, 2013 |access-date=January 1, 2025 |work=[[IMDb]]}}</ref>
|-
| [[Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen]]
| [[Christopher McQuarrie]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[American Cinema Editors#Eddie Awards|American Cinema Editors Awards]]
| [[American Cinema Editors Award for Best Edited Feature Film – Dramatic|Best Edited Feature Film]]
| [[John Ottman]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Casting Society of America#Artios Awards|Artios Awards]]
| [[Artios Award for Outstanding Achievement in Casting – Big Budget Feature (Drama)|Outstanding Achievement in Feature Film Casting – Drama]]
| Francine Maisler
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.castingsociety.com/awards/artios/1996 |title=Nominees/Winners |publisher=[[Casting Society of America]] |access-date=July 10, 2019 |archive-date=December 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201035722/http://www.castingsociety.com/awards/artios/1996 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| [[Boston Society of Film Critics Awards 1995|Boston Society of Film Critics Awards]]
| [[Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref name="carr">{{cite news |last=Carr |first=Jay |title=Hub critics pick ''Sense and Sensibility'' |work=[[Boston Globe]] |date=December 18, 1995}}</ref> 
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[49th British Academy Film Awards|British Academy Film Awards]]
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Film|Best Film]]
| [[Bryan Singer]] and Michael McDonnell
| {{nom}}
| rowspan="3" align="center"| <ref name="boehm">{{cite news |last=Boehm |first=Erich |title=Costume dramas win bulk of BAFTA awards |work=Variety |date=April 29 – May 5, 1996}}</ref>
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay|Best Original Screenplay]]
| Christopher McQuarrie
| {{won}}
|-
| [[BAFTA Award for Best Editing|Best Editing]]
| John Ottman
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 1995|Chicago Film Critics Association Awards]]
| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
| rowspan="3" align="center"| 
|-
| [[Chicago Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| Christopher McQuarrie
| {{won}}
|-
| Most Promising Actor
| [[Benicio del Toro]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Chlotrudis Society for Independent Films|Chlotrudis Awards]]
| Best Supporting Actor
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[21st César Awards|César Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[César Award for Best Foreign Film|Best Foreign Film]]
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[1st Critics' Choice Awards|Critics' Choice Awards]]
| [[Critics' Choice Movie Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}{{efn|Tied with [[Ed Harris]] for ''[[Apollo 13 (film)|Apollo 13]]'', ''[[Just Cause (film)|Just Cause]]'' and ''[[Nixon (film)|Nixon]]''}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |title=The BFCA Critics' Choice Awards :: 1995 |publisher=Broadcast Film Critics Association |url=http://www.bfca.org/ccawards/1995.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081212034353/http://www.bfca.org/ccawards/1995.php |url-status=dead |archive-date=December 12, 2008}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards 1995|Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Film|Best Picture]]
| {{nom}}
| rowspan="2" align="center"| 
|-
| [[Dallas–Fort Worth Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Edgar Awards|Edgar Allan Poe Awards]]
| [[List of Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay winners|Best Motion Picture]]
| Christopher McQuarrie
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://edgarawards.com/category-list-best-motion-picture/ |title=Category List – Best Motion Picture |website=[[Edgar Awards]] |access-date=August 15, 2021 |archive-date=January 29, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220129092724/https://edgarawards.com/category-list-best-motion-picture/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[1st Empire Awards|Empire Awards]]
| [[Empire Award for Best Newcomer|Best Debut]]
| Bryan Singer
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.empireonline.com/awards2003/pastwinners/1996.asp |title=Empire Awards Past Winners – 1996 |work=[[Empireonline.com]] |publisher=[[Bauer Consumer Media]] |year=2003 |access-date=September 16, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121014113022/http://www.empireonline.com/awards2003/pastwinners/1996.asp |archive-date=October 14, 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| [[53rd Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe Awards]]
| [[Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture|Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite news |last1=Dutka |first1=Elaine |last2=Puig |first2=Claudia |name-list-style=and |date=22 January 1996 |title='Sense,' 'Babe' Take Home Top Golden Globes |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-01-22-mn-27442-story.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200425143538/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-01-22-mn-27442-story.html |archive-date=April 25, 2020 |access-date=13 January 2018 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]]}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[11th Independent Spirit Awards|Independent Spirit Awards]]
| [[Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Male|Best Supporting Male]]
| Benicio del Toro
| {{won}}
| rowspan="3" align="center"| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-03-25-ca-50950-story.html |title='Leaving Las Vegas' Arrives in Big Way at Spirit Awards |date=1996-03-25 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |access-date=2012-08-16 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306052117/http://articles.latimes.com/1996-03-25/entertainment/ca-50950_1_las-vegas |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| [[Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay|Best Screenplay]]
| Christopher McQuarrie
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Independent Spirit Award for Best Cinematography|Best Cinematography]]
| [[Newton Thomas Sigel]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Kinema Junpo Awards]]
| Best Foreign Language Film
| Bryan Singer
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[1995 Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards|Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards]]
| [[Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{Runner-up}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite news |last=King |first=Susan |title='Las Vegas' Glitters for L.A. Film Critics |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-12-17-me-15039-story.html |access-date=28 December 2017 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=17 December 1995 |archive-date=October 29, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231029125032/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-12-17-me-15039-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[National Board of Review Awards 1995|National Board of Review Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[National Board of Review: Top Ten Films|Top 10 Films]]
| {{draw|10th Place}}
| rowspan="3" align="center"| <ref name="evans2">{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Greg |title=Crix picks praise ''Sense,'' ''Vegas'' |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=December 18, 1995 – December 31, 1996}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
|-
| colspan="2"| [[National Board of Review Award for Best Cast|Best Acting by an Ensemble]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[1995 National Society of Film Critics Awards|National Society of Film Critics Awards]]
| [[National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| rowspan="2"| Kevin Spacey
| {{Runner-up}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite news |last=Holden |first=Stephen |author-link=Stephen Holden |date=January 4, 1996 |title=Babe' Is Chosen as Best Film by National Society of Critics |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/01/04/movies/babe-is-chosen-as-best-film-by-national-society-of-critics.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150912090121/http://www.nytimes.com/1996/01/04/movies/babe-is-chosen-as-best-film-by-national-society-of-critics.html |archive-date=September 12, 2015 |access-date=January 2, 2018 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>
|-
| [[1995 New York Film Critics Circle Awards|New York Film Critics Circle Awards]]
| [[New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actor|Best Supporting Actor]]
| {{won}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite news |last=Maslin |first=Janet |author-link=Janet Maslin |date=15 December 1995 |title=Leaving Las Vegas' Is Voted Best Film by Critics Circle |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/15/movies/leaving-las-vegas-is-voted-best-film-by-critics-circle.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726180936/https://www.nytimes.com/1995/12/15/movies/leaving-las-vegas-is-voted-best-film-by-critics-circle.html |archive-date=July 26, 2010 |access-date=25 December 2017 |work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref>
|-
| Online Film & Television Association Awards
| colspan="2"| Best Motion Picture
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Sant Jordi Awards]]
| Best Foreign Actor
| [[Chazz Palminteri]]
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Sarajevo Film Festival]]
| Audience Award for Best Feature Film
| Bryan Singer
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| rowspan="3"| [[22nd Saturn Awards|Saturn Awards]]
| colspan="2"| [[Saturn Award for Best Action or Adventure Film|Best Action/Adventure Film]]
| {{won}}
| rowspan="3" align="center"| 
|-
| [[Saturn Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| Bryan Singer
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Saturn Award for Best Music|Best Music]]
| John Ottman
| {{won}}
|-
| [[2nd Screen Actors Guild Awards|Screen Actors Guild Awards]]
| [[Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role|Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role]]
| Kevin Spacey
| {{nom}}
| align="center"| <ref>{{cite news |last=Collins |first=Scott |title=Cage, Sarandon Capture Top Screen Actor Awards |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1996-02-26-ca-40205-story.html |access-date=25 June 2017 |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=26 February 1996 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150921113019/http://articles.latimes.com/1996-02-26/entertainment/ca-40205_1_actor-awards |archive-date=21 September 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| rowspan="2"| [[Seattle International Film Festival]]
| Best Director
| Bryan Singer
| {{won}}
| rowspan="2" align="center"| 
|-
| Best Actor
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| [[Society of Texas Film Critics Awards 1995|Society of Texas Film Critics Awards]]
| colspan="2"| Best Film
| {{won}}
| rowspan="4" align="center"| 
|-
| Best Director
| Bryan Singer
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Supporting Actor
| Kevin Spacey
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Original Screenplay
| Christopher McQuarrie
| {{won}}
|-
| Southeastern Film Critics Association Awards
| colspan="2"| Best Picture
| {{draw|8th Place}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Tokyo International Film Festival]]
| Silver Award
| Bryan Singer
| {{won}}
| align="center"| 
|-
| [[Turkish Film Critics Association|Turkish Film Critics Association Awards]]
| colspan="2"| Best Foreign Film
| {{draw|2nd Place}}
| align="center"| 
|}

=== Legacy ===
On June 17, 2008, the [[American Film Institute]] revealed its "[[AFI's 10 Top 10]]"—the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres—after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. ''The Usual Suspects'' was acknowledged as the tenth-best mystery film.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=American Film Institute |title=AFI's 10 Top 10 |date=June 17, 2008 |url=http://www.afi.com/10top10/category.aspx?cat=5 |access-date=September 3, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624043709/http://afi.com/10top10/category.aspx?cat=5|archive-date=June 24, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> Verbal Kint was voted the #48 villain in "[[AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains]]" in June 2003.

''[[Entertainment Weekly]]'' cited the film as one of the "13 must-see heist movies".<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Ramisetti |first=Kirthana |title=Pros and Cons |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=March 6, 2008 |url=https://ew.com/article/2008/07/15/13-great-screen-heists/ |access-date=July 7, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080528141027/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,969054_8,00.html|archive-date=May 28, 2008|url-status=live}}</ref> ''[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]]'' ranked Keyser Söze #69 in their "The 100 Greatest Movie Characters" poll.<ref>{{cite news |title=The 100 Greatest Movie Characters |url=https://www.empireonline.com/100-greatest-movie-characters/default.asp?c=69 |work=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |publisher=[[Bauer Media Group]] |location=London, England |date=June 29, 2015 |access-date=December 2, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111107044539/http://www.empireonline.com/100-greatest-movie-characters/default.asp?c=69|archive-date=November 7, 2011|url-status=live}}</ref> In August 2016, James Charisma of ''[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]]'' ranked ''The Usual Suspects'' among [[Kevin Spacey]]'s greatest film performances.<ref name="Paste">{{cite web |first=James |last=Charisma |title=All 45 of Kevin Spacey's Movie Performances, Ranked |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/08/ranking-kevin-spaceys-movie-performances-worst-to.html |work=[[Paste (magazine)|Paste]] |publisher=[[Wolfgang's Vault]] |location=Avondale Estates, Georgia |date=August 15, 2016 |access-date=January 16, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118050737/https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2016/08/ranking-kevin-spaceys-movie-performances-worst-to.html|archive-date=January 18, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2013, the [[Writers Guild of America]] ranked the screenplay #35 on its list of 101 Greatest Screenplays ever written.<ref name="WGA101">{{cite web |title=101 Greatest Screenplays |url=http://www.wga.org/writers-room/101-best-lists/101-greatest-screenplays/list |publisher=Writers Guild of America, West |access-date=October 16, 2016|archive-url=https://archive.today/20161122211118/http://www.wga.org/writers-room/101-best-lists/101-greatest-screenplays/list|archive-date=November 22, 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>