User reviews

"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.

I was certainly entertained by the movie. Since the synopsis has it, the fact that the two black guys are university professors/researchers is not a spoiler. The other twists are interesting enough. The premise holds your interest through its run time, and the film doesn't run too long.

One minor issue was all of the jump backs in time. It was a little much to keep track of what is present day vs. past.

The BIG issue is that (and this is not spoiler either) even if they returned the money and explained themselves, they still committed a crime. It's a little far-fetched that they would be let off scot-free by multiple cities, EVEN when the nature of their study is explained (the race card stuff). I get that they want you to think that they are let go because of the explanation and the notion that if the race stuff got out, it would make the cops look bad, so they just let them go.

It's somewhat of a clever script, I'll give them that, and the performances are good. I'm giving it 6/10 out because 5 is average and this is ever-so-slightly above that, but this isn't the greatest thing since sliced bread. It's an entertaining watch if you can see it for free or very low cost.

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..

It seems that I must have watched a different movie to the first two reviewers. This is easily one of the worst films I've seen all year.

Put simply, I was unable to get past the halfway point of this film (I literally walked out on this movie). The acting was horrible, the script was clunky and lacked subtlety of any kind. The portrayal of the police officers in this movie was laughably bad (extremely one-dimensional). The attempt to build suspense had me grinding my teeth very quickly.

While the makers of this film were obviously aiming for an intelligent, racially-charged thriller, they've ended up producing an absolute stinker. This is a "B" movie personified.

You have been warned!

The Suspect is one of the movies that has intriguing hook right from the start. It shrewdly fiddles with the timeline back and forth, giving just enough information as it goes and revealing timely revelations later on. Whereas other thrillers might offer aggressive approach, The Suspect bids its time with apt performance by its cast along with the premise of social manipulation.

A sheriff in small town arrests a man after bank robbery. This particular suspect only has one identifiable feature that allegedly implicates him, his dark skin. Since it's the farthest thing from CSI, the sheriff must determine if this suspect is indeed the felon. The strange dynamic concept spirals further as there are a lot of questions concerning his behavior, which might not be so accommodating. The movie's biggest strength is its social and psychological aspects, these are easily identifiable to audience as well as meticulously scripted.

Acting is fine, with the cast looking beyond their stereotypical roles as they try to outwit each other. Cinematography isn't grandiose as the movie sets almost entirely in rural town. In fact it's exclusively shot only in a few major sets and the rest is ordinary road or outdoor. This is made cleverly into an advantage since the movie probably wouldn't work with bolder setting. The camera-work itself is good, opting more for precision than flair.

The change in pace flows adequately well with smart script to guide it. Some scenes pique curiosity while a few others are surprisingly humorous. One drawback from this shifting pace is it can be confusing at times, also towards the end the narration is slightly heavy-handed. The development could be smoother as some of the scenes may be foreshadowing. Nevertheless, the movie maintains a balanced focus through its run time.

The Suspect is a different type of thriller, it delivers an alternative and restrained story. If this is a book, which we should never judge by its cover, it would be a pop-up book due to series of trickery it has stored inside.

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.

This is the first time I am writing a review on IMDb and I am doing this for two reasons: 1). Because this is a truly great movie that deserves a review 2). To boost up the ratings because I am truly shocked that the film has received such poor ratings (so far)

I will not give much away (and nor should you do much reading on the plot) because this is one of those movies where the less you know, the better it is. The settings are very simple yet effective. And with a storyline like this there was no need for all the mumbo jumbo CGI, special effects, blasts and the whole malarkey. There are so many twists in this film and you will be glued right on the get go.

When I first watched the film, there were no reviews/ratings available as it had just been released, so I was very much looking forward to the reviews and see that (not if) other viewers enjoyed it as much as I did. Now that I see the ratings, I felt compelled (like the other reviewers here) to urge people to watch it as it is truly a remarkable, original and SMART film. So please, do yourself a favour and watch it- you will NOT be disappointed!

I wasn't impressed by this one to be honest. The entire movie felt like a cheap tv-movie. The only positive thing was the acting, which wasn't bad, but the rest just fell short. Annoying soundtrack, exactly the kind you could expect from a tv-movie. The story is not very believable, let just say that if this happened in real life those african American men would have been or shot, or ended up in jail for the rest of their lives, certainly in trigger happy America. I hoped for something better, but what I saw was borderline boring.

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!

Some of us while watching a film, look for unpredictability, and on my opinion 95 per cent of the movies are about the same, crime with a cliché, zombie with a cliché, etc... with a cliché, and when you find an argument that is telling you nothing, I mean teasing you with the same question: "What is really happening here?" and then immerse and interest you without giving a real clue, that's what I CALL A GOOD ONE!

I came into "The suspect" waiting for something that would turn off my attention within fifteen minutes, instead, after an hour or so, I was with eyes glued to the screen, no blood, no shootings, no CGI, but a story, not build in great suspense, but properly elaborated, and I wondered how come movies like this fall into the great pit of indifference... because most moviegoers are lazy and dumb? The acting is good, at moments like watching live theater, more interestingly the plot takes a turn as if Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad) had something to do with it.

The writer and director's name is STUART CONELLY and hopefully his work catches the attention of a TV network, or a big movie studio, because frankly, we need more intelligent movies like "THE SUSPECT"

My recommendation is: watch this movie of you are looking for a smart and twisted ending! And as always no spoilers in here.

Refreshingly different thriller that although shot on a budget is well edited, shot and contains some great acting.

I must admit that initially I was not that impressed but as you watch more the plot evolves and the characters start to make an impact. There is some great editing that really pieces together the story, yes maybe the redneck police are a little one sided but situations like this are believable. Without saying too much it's a great scam!

The two key actors (cop and bank robber) deliver great performances and the twist at the end is unexpected till the last minute. Well worth your time and deserves at least a 7.

Would highly recommend this film and agree with the other reviewer who said to watch it cold without knowing the plot. I am a die-hard movie goer and a tough critic and I loved this film. It is incredibly well- written, directed and produced. This movie feels like a delivery from a seasoned director and production team.

Mekhi Phifer is outstanding. His character is smart and edgy. I thoroughly enjoyed every scene with him. Bill Sadler is eerily believable as a not-so-country-bumpkin cop trying to protect his town while trying to solve a crime. The ending is a stunner.

The film quality feels like a Hollywood blockbuster in terms of shooting, editing and story line, not an Indie film shot in rural Pennsylvania.

Intelligent and gripping - one you will want to enjoy many times over.

I'm giving this a 10 to fix the rating, cause this movie at the very LEAST deserves a 7.5 to 8. The intensity of the two black "suspects" actors at times is truly impressive. They really pulled a stunt on acting here. It's hard to get into details without spoiling the fun, so it'll have to suffice to say that the characters are very believable. Even those sad stereotypes that don't get a lot of time on screen are eerily realistic, sadly. However what makes The Suspect truly great is the plot line.

It would really be best you go into this movie without knowing anything about it. That way you can relish in all the plot twists, which are all very clever and original.

If you did already read a synopsis however, you'll still have your fair share of twists which come rather unexpected.

So what's there more to want for a good crime thriller than good, believable acting paired with an original story filled with twists and turns? Go watch it and hate/thank me later.

First, let me say that I can't believe some users are posting such low reviews after having admitted to not even seeing the entire movie. They must be impressively psychic to know exactly how the movie ends without watching it all the way through! Their scores make the movie seem bad to others that may only just look at the composite score out of 10, when in actuality it is a very gripping and intriguing movie.

Advice: Don't initially look too much into the plot (watch it cold like I did). Just sit back and enjoy everything as it unfolds. Don't judge anything while watching or wonder what makes sense or not. Don't try and scan for possible continuity errors. Don't mindlessly check Facebook or casually invest your attention to this movie. Don't think you know it all or are better than everyone (or possibly just better than everyone you are watching). Just watch and take it all in... This movie does all of the thinking for you and will even remind you as it goes with brief flashbacks to something a character has said. Save all of the aforementioned "don'ts" for when the credits roll and only then should you reflect back on the movie to gauge whether or not it was a valid use of your time and attention.

I stumbled across it on Netflix and put it on very late into the night (actually, early morning) expecting it to be just the sleeping pill I needed. To my surprise, I remained riveted as the sun rose on the next day. Oops! Anyway, I'm glad I didn't miss out on this very smart film. Enjoy!