Pop culture often portrays people with disabilities within polarizing landscapes which separate the weak from the strong and in The Usual Suspects, the central character, Verbal Kint, is perceived to be a “gimp” and a “cripple” because of his visible physicality. In the plot of The Usual Suspects, disability can be defined by the Sociopolitical Model. Verbal’s limitations were perceived as physical and social barriers in the community and his weakness put him on unequal level with the others. (Barton, 1992, Pg. 51) Thus, Verbal was someone to be pitied and not taken seriously, however Verbal was actually a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Within the Culture of Disability, disability places the onus upon society and not the individual. The Usual Suspects presented the perfect twist on this Sociopolitical Model because the protagonist was faking the disability to take advantage of preconceived notions from culture.
The criminal culture in the film is “not so much a product of sharing as a product of sharing as a product of people hamming each other into shape with the well-structured tools already available.” (McDermott, Varenne, 1995, Pg. 23) Illustrated from after the initial line-up where the suspects were placed in the holding cell; Mr. Hockney called Verbal “Pretzel Man” and asked what he could be doing there. The other suspects had well-known specialized skills from the beginning of the scene and had completely ignored Verbal Kint. According to the H.G. Wells’s Difference Approach, when unpacking assumptions, one can imagine that the world consists of a wide range of people with different competencies. (McDermott, Varenne, 1995, Pg. 27) With the exception of Dean Keaton, the group of suspects judged Verbal’s abilities at face value and didn’t initially accept him into their proposed their jewel scheme. After being accepted, he destroyed the cultural stereotype by coming up with a plan where nobody had to die in the successful jewel heist. Moving forward, instead of being called “gimp”, the usual suspects called Verbal, “The Man with the Plan.”
Consequently, every other member of the criminal gang was found dead and Verbal Kint was called into questioning by Agent Kujan who saw Verbal as stupid, weak and easily manipulated. He had never dreamed that Verbal had created a false disabled identity. Little did he know that Verbal manipulated the entire situation from the very beginning. For example, he asked for a light and pretended not to be able to use the lighter. He dropped the lighter on the floor and let Agent Kujan pick it up and light the cigarette for him. By this act, Agent Kujan was reaffirmed, that Verbal was helpless and he could therefore outsmart him.
When the agent asked Verbal about the identity of the notorious Kaiser Tsoze, Verbal communicated a legend of criminal bravery and built up a powerful anti-hero who was allegedly the real man behind the crime. This tall tale was an interesting technique used by the protagonist because it deflected suspicion added mystique to the infamously accused. (Barton, 1992, Pg. 52) Verbal told Agent Kujan that the “the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist” and also warned the agent that after he was gone, Kaiser Tzose would disappear forever. The agent didn’t suspect a thing.
I loved this pop culture depiction of disability because no other movie is centered on a protagonist with a disability which was ultimately a charade. Verbal came off as a fundamentally tragic character, subject to discrimination on all sides of the law; however, he was actually the true ringleader of evil. (Barton, 1992, Pg. 52) No one ever saw that coming…He completely took advantage of his perceived tragedy and was never given difficult physical tasks by the gang and consistently deemed weak and unintelligent by the law officer. Agent Kujan tried to pin the whole manipulation upon Dean Keaton and then Kaiser Tsoze and he was oblivious to the story that was literally written on the wall.
In the final scene of The Usual Suspects, Verbal limped away, just as Agent Kujan relaxed and looked at the back wall and saw the origin of all of Verbal’s silly stories used to create confusion and deflection. Suddenly, the agent remembered all the truths that came out as they spoke and realized the weakling cripple was truly the legendary mastermind. Verbal limped away and transformed into an able-bodied person. As he got into an expensive car, Agent Kujan ran after him, missed him and then disappeared. In the end, the eye-witness sketch of Kaiser Tsoze turned out to be Verbal Kint and the quote came back into the agent’s mind… “The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.”
The Usual Suspects was framed within the Sociopolitical Model which views disability as being caused by the barriers that exist within society and the way society is organized. The criminal culture as well as the law enforcement figure blatantly discriminated against Verbal because of his physical impairments and assigned him no connection to the true crime. This pop culture example artfully used presumption that disabled people are weak and turned it into a point of strength and power.
Works Sited
Barton, L. (1992) Disability and the necessity for a socio-political perspective. In L. Barton, K. Ballard, & G.
McDermott, R., Vareanne, H. (1995). Culture as disability. Anthropology & Education Quarterly, 26 (3), 22-34
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