Bringing a fairly good film to the home theater screen Stuart Connelly’s first effort as a director, The Suspect turns out well. He knows how to make an intriguing drama with a few good twists to make it a worthwhile Blu-ray/DVD release. And, using familiar faces as his central cast gives strength to his tome of crime and deception.
The story centers on two African American men who plot bank heists using issues connected to their race to throw the police off balance. It’s a good ploy, one that gives the suspect the upper hand. Following a robbery in the rural town of Meridian, we find Freeman Finch (Mekhi Phifer) being interrogated by Sheriff Dixon (William Sadler) and Deputy Riley (Derek Roche) in a cell at the local jail. Picked up along a road leading out of town with no identification, he’s a likely possibility of being the perp. Very cool in his replies, Finch starts to make a case for himself using the fact that he is black and in that his being in the South being targeted for the crime. When Finch finally gets around to telling the story that helped him get out of the same jam in another town, Sheriff Dixon decides to set up a plan of his own.
The film plays out from there taking the viewers through a series of twists that finally leads to the truth. It’s a film of deception and distraction and director Stuart Connelly plays it out well. He takes his audience into a tight enclosure giving the feel of dread that something bad is going to happen to the suspect. His script then offers a good defense for the man in the clutches of the small town involving a sociological experiment in today’s social reformation and the lawmen back off somewhat. Connelly then twists act two with possibilities that there really is a crime being committed and we start to see another side of the story.
The actors are up for the difficult script giving good performances all around. Mekhi Phifer (“ER” TV) works a lot of magic showing several sides to his character, both bad and good. He makes his Finch a tough guy at first in order to set up the police that they are being racists, then turns the con game into a study he is doing as a professor at a university. He’s brings out another more benevolent person leading to his final ultimate goal. In support, Sterling K. Brown (“Person of Interest” TV) delivers Arthur Grier, the second subject in the plot to detect bigotry and discrimination in law enforcement. Each of the two men take turns as the suspect being arrested in the ploy to earn respect and deliver the ultimate outcome for their plan.
The Suspect Blu-ray has several extras to watch and learn about the film.
BONUS FEATURES:
- “Director’s and Producer’s Commentary” You can turn on either Stuart Connelly’s descriptions of the film while playing it back or choose producer Mary Jo Barthmaier to do the talking.
- “Conversations with the Director” Here we find Connelly going over some of the behind the scenes making of The Suspect. He gets into the nitty-gritty of who, what, where and how the film came about.
- “Making A Scene” This is very good as it walks you through the making of the final scene of the film showing the story boards in a corner as the actor play out the scene. If you are a budding filmmaker, it’s a must watch bonus.
- Music Video – “Happy Endings”
- Extended Scenes
- And more
The video quality is above par with an aspect ratio of 2.35:1 that mimics its theatrical release. The production value in the indie suffers somewhat with the low cost budget and the scenes in the finale are quite dark and unexciting due to camerawork.
The sound quality on the other hand is very good. Using the DTS HD Master Audio 5.1 on the Blu-ray helps a lot, especially with the copious dialogue delivered by the cast. The special effects sound is quite distinct and adds stimulation to the film.
The movie The Suspect has not been rated by the MPAA, but contains violence and language. Be cautious when deciding to allow immature children see the film as it does have some scenes that are inappropriate for adolescents.
Specifications and additional film information:
Cast: Mekhi Phifer, William Sadler, Derek Roché, Sterling K. Brown, Lizzy DeClement
Director: Stuart Connelly
MPAA Rating: Not Rated, violence, language
Genre: Crime, Drama
Running Time: 1 hour 38min
Video Release Date: April 22, 2014
Original Film Release Date: January 23, 2014
Language: English
Format: Blu-ray (also DVD)
Audio: DTS HD Master Audio 5.1
Video: Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1, Letterbox
Subtitles: English SDH
Number of Discs: 1 Disc
Distributed by: RLJ Entertainment
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
