In murder mysteries or crime suspense genre, there are two types of formats usually followed. In the first, the main crime or murder event is displayed in the beginning itself but the viewers are not shown the real culprit and the lead characters go out finding the actual killer, taking along the viewers in their investigations. Whereas in the second format, the whole crime scenario is displayed clearly in the beginning, along with the open revelation of how it was done & by whom! And then the emphasis completely shifts on how the real culprit hides himself from the police detectives, only to get caught in the end after some clever chasing. So where in the first format, the viewer is always with the investigators trying to find out the truth behind the crime, there in the second they unintentionally find themselves on the culprit’s side, sarcastically enjoying the way he hides himself from the Police & other private detectives.
No doubt both the formats have their own charm and fan following which works for the lovers of this particular genre. But SUSPECT X is a rare psychological crime drama which though begins on the outline of the second format but then gives you another shocking twist towards the end, revealing that even the audience had a completely wrong notion of how the crime was actually planned by the genius in those initial scenes.
Without disclosing much about the film, I would just like to add that this is an intriguing story of a lonely, master mathematician Mr. Ishigami, who comes forward to help his beautiful neighbor living alone with her young daughter, after a tragic incident. The lady & her daughter accidently murder the ex-husband visiting their house and now Ishigami guides them how to escape from this unintentional murder and mislead the police through his clever tricks. Interestingly the police officials take their help in investigations from another genius physicist, who is an old friend of Ishigami and then begins the clash of wits between both the sharp masterminds knowing each other well.
Continuing with the same settings & cast of famous Japanese TV series GALILEO (2007 & more) the film was actually based on the novel “The Devotion of Suspect X” by Keigo Hiqashino (the third in his “Detective Galileo” Series). And why the novel was strangely titled “The Devotion of Suspect X”, can only be understood after witnessing its shocking climax with a great unexpected twist having an emotional human touch. In short, SUSPECT X is one of those crime movies, which stay in your mind for long after you have finished watching them. And proving its worth further, the film was not only remade in Korea as PERFECT NUMBER in 2012 but its main plot was also recently adapted in a Malayalam film titled DRISHYAM in 2013 featuring Mohan Lal in the lead and the film was a huge box office success in the region.
On a concluding note, SUSPECT X is like a poetic crime planned by a genius mathematician, who reveals the actual secret just through his expressive eyes in the end and yet admits nothing. The film can simply be praised using the following metaphor which says,
"What is more harder….?
To solve a tough mystery……or to create such a mystery which is hard to solve?”
And if the above tricky question seems interesting enough to you, then do watch this classic crime thriller as a must and active your grey cells once again.
Directed by Hiroshi Nishitani
Wrrtten By Yasushi Fukuda (Screenplay) & Keigo Higashino (Serial Storyline “Yogisha X No Kenshin”)
Starring : Masaharu Fukuyama, Ko Shibasaki, Kazuki Kitamura & more.
(Thanks to “Dheeraj” for recommending this film in his valuable comment.)
Tags :
Suspect X / Yogisha X No Kenshin (2008), Movies To See Before You Die World Cinema, Suspense-Thriller, Must Watch World Classics List By Bobby Sing, Not To Be Missed Movies List By Bobby Sing, Worth Watching Movie Classics By Bobby Sing.
