The Suspect

"You're not from around here. You got no identification. You got no car. You're covered in dirt like you've been digging somewhere and to top it all off..." Two college professors are working on a study in racial dynamics and bias. They plan to rob a bank in a small town record how they are treated before they give the money back. Things are going as planned until they find a sheriff (Sadler) who will stop at nothing to get a positive identification. When the partner doesn't show up with the money to prove it's all an act things take a serious turn. This is a difficult movie to review. It is very good but it's hard to talk too much about it without giving anything away. I will say though that the movie at the same time breaks down and supports certain stereotypes, when you watch you will see what I mean. The best part of the movie though is that you never are quite sure what is going on and it keeps you guessing all the way until the end. This is the type of movie where there is really no defined good or bad guys. That makes a movie more fun to watch. Overall, a movie that stays one step ahead of you the entire time, I like movies like that. I give this a B+.

This film has merits and problems, both, but in the end, it keeps your attention and makes you care about the characters and how the story is going to end.

The acting is pretty solid and the pace is lean and appropriate.

So it succeeds at a basic level.

AND the subject matter is thought-provoking. This reviewer found himself looking at situations and behaviour with a keen eye toward subtext and meaning. I can't say more without spoiling it.

As other reviewers have said, this is best viewed with a minimal or no previous understanding of the plot. Just enjoy the ride.

A perfect start to a film is watching landscapes and the introduction to a venue, while listening to a radio updating you. In seconds you are put into the situation. A small town has just experienced a bank robbery. And a sheriff of a completely white small town leaves the police car to start an interrogation of a black man which is suspected of the robbery. Simply great, and a great start of the film.

I like a film that is different, and this is very original both in the storytelling and in the plot. I was engaged in the story all the way through, though it's a little bit confusing. There's even some flash backs to help you understand. By no way perfect, but still interesting and engaging. On a large budget this would have potential to be a large hit.

William Sadler is great as the sheriff, as is Mekhi Phifer as the suspect. It's a low budget production but they have made the best out of it. Talented film making by first time offender Stuart Connelly! Go see it!

Good Movie story line, well acted.

To Bad whomever was in charge of costumes, didn't bother with checking some of the props that were used on the uniforms of the Officers... the Sheriff had both a PFC and a Spc4 insignias on his uniform and all the officers were displaying multiple rank insignias of Private, corporal or Sergeant ranks at the same time. Noticed the insignia for Artillery on one shoulder panel and the Sheriff had infantry insignia on his breast pocket. Jeesh any military person could have advised them better than the person they had handling wardrobe.

Other that that, not a bad movie..

I think the description of the movie may have thrown me off a little bit, because I was expecting the events to turn out differently, and the lead characters to be different.

I must say, when the experiment that is the movie's plot goes wrong and the goals of the experiment start to reveal itself, it made for an interesting roller-coaster of events done in a very low key matter, and very well.

It's funny, the movie tries to be cleaver and show you that things are not what they seem, but it messes up somewhere and the movie falls victim of the point it was trying to make, and as a result does not make it at all.

the summary made me feel that it was trying to speak out against prejudice, but I felt everyone in the film just got stereotyped.

I don't know if the filmmaker intended to do this or realized what he was doing, but if that's not the case he may want to strangle the man who promoted this film. It's a good film if you can take race out of the equation, I couldn't.