Suspect X

This wasn't just a detective drama. I love it the best in Japanese movies.

I had watched it many times on TV at the year-end every year. But the last scenes made me cry every time. I have known Shinichi Tsutsumi and Yasuko Matsuyuki since I was a child. But I again realized they were such great actor and actress. He was really like a gloomy person. Actually, he's a talkative and jovial guy though.

Even if I know ending, I think it's one of masterpieces because it gives me goosebumps every time.

The title "devotion of a suspect X" also impressed me so much.

I am not a big fan of movies which are based on books. Just look at what they did with Harry Potter and others (LOTR is an exception). So I wasn't much excited when my friend told me it was based on a book and I tried not to watch it. He practically had to make me sit through the first 15 minutes of the movie to make sure I was intrigued. Well, I am glad he made me watch it because Suspect X is one the best mystery thriller movies I've watched in the last couple of years.

Suspect X is a story of a murdered husband, a wife, a daughter and two geniuses. Manabu Yukawa is a scientist who helps out the police once in a while. And Tetsuya Ishigami is Mathematician who lives next door to the wife of the murdered man. Both have their reasons to be involved. The story is written tightly. The cinematography is hauntingly beautiful.

The strongest point of the movie is the interactions of the two geniuses. When they are there talking, you don't want to miss a second of their conversation. They are not conniving and trying to out do each other. They are just old friends talking. And that's what makes this movie so special.

I highly recommend it to those who love Hitchcock movies.

Note: I don't know Japanese and watched this movie with English Subtitles. It in no way affected the mood of the movie.

This film made me an instant fan of the actor who played Suspect X-his name escaped me at first, but his performance left a strong impression. The real strength of this movie lies in its source material: a brilliantly crafted Keigo Higashino mystery. Many suspense novels are too intricate to adapt smoothly into film, leaving audiences lost, but this story relies on a relatively simple trick. Viewers can actually follow along and even solve it as they watch, which makes the suspense so engaging.

The human drama is also well handled. Higashino's works often focus heavily on family issues, but here that element is restrained, allowing the relationships between the culprit and the heroine, and between the culprit and the detective, to shine.

Higashino has written many outstanding works. With the right production and international push, they could become a catalyst for Japanese cinema to gain worldwide recognition. While Japan is often labeled an "anime nation" or "manga nation," popularity alone doesn't equal depth. True narrative depth lies in Japanese mystery fiction. Especially between 1980 and 2010, Japan produced many of the finest mysteries in the world. Yet, it seems Japanese film companies have no intention of using this strength to break onto the global stage-and that is truly unfortunate.

First of all let me admit that I haven't read the book "Devotion of Suspect X" upon which this film was based. Apart from few loose ends in the movie about the characters (could be director's fault or not), this movie fed me with surprises one after another. Loved the way the story unfolded with these suspense elements which make me feel shame that I haven't read the book. The suspense at the Climax was a shock and is totally unsuspected .

This movie is copied/inspired/plagiarized in India with the name "Dhrishyam" which is again going to be inspired to another language from the same country.

Any fan of thrillers should be no stranger to the name of Higashino. This film is of course a brilliant adaptation of the book. The tension has been created right from the start and maintained throughout the film. There have always been misguiding trivialites that lead you deep into the woods, or snow-clad mountains. You can sense there will be some more twists and turns in it while watching the plot unfolds.