Fictional Characters dictionary
Keyser 厂枚锄别
Who is聽Keyser 厂枚锄别?
Keyser 厂枚锄别 is a brutal crime lord in the 1995 film The Usual Suspects. Both in the film and popular culture, he is legendary for his artful evasion.
Where does Keyser 厂枚锄别 come from?
In The Usual Suspects, US authorities question a petty, hobbled conman, Roger 鈥淰erbal鈥� Kint, played by Kevin Spacey, about a notorious underground gangster named Keyser 厂枚锄别 and his connection to the deadly destruction of a freighter ship. Among criminals and law enforcement, 厂枚锄别 has a mythical status for his extreme murderousness and elusiveness.
In a twist ending, the film reveals Verbal has fabricated his story about 厂枚锄别 using details from clippings on an investigator鈥檚 office bulletin board. The final scenes suggest the lowly Kint was 厂枚锄别 the entire time, escaping capture yet again. Summing up 厂枚锄别鈥檚 beguiling MO, Verbal quotes Charles Baudelaire: 鈥淭he greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.鈥�
According to Usual Suspects director Bryan Singer, the name 厂枚锄别 comes from a Turkish word for 鈥渙ne who talks too much,鈥� further echoed by Kint鈥檚 nickname, Verbal.
Keyser 厂枚锄别 has since captivated the popular imagination. Not only has the character ranked as one of cinema鈥檚 top villains, but he has also inspired his own archetype. Revisiting the film twenty years after its release, CNN鈥檚 Brandon Griggs observed: 鈥溾�楰eyser 厂枚锄别鈥� has come to mean a renowned figure who is feared but elusive鈥攕omeone everyone hears about but no one ever meets in person.鈥� For instance, CBS described famed sports bettor Billy Walters as the 鈥淜eyser 厂枚锄别鈥� of Las Vegas, an 鈥渋con…who is rarely seen in the casinos and not recognized when he’s there.鈥� For her ability to believe her ever-changing story, a prosecutor on truTv argued Casey Anthony, the mother at the center of the sensational 2011 murder trial, exhibited 鈥渢he Keyser 厂枚锄别 Phenomenon.鈥�
The character even has developed his own verb, notably used on Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 鈥淒oes anyone else feel like they鈥檝e been Keyser 厂枚锄别鈥檇?鈥� In his 2004 Slayer Slang: A Buffy the Vampire Slayer Lexicon, Michael Adams defined to Keyser 厂枚锄别 as to 鈥渄efinitively manipulate, outmaneuver.鈥�
While a dreaded evil mastermind, Keyser 厂枚锄别鈥檚 self-created identity, genius for outfoxing his opponents, and ability to hide in plain sight continues to inspire fascination, and, in some domains, might be considered admirable. In a 2013 article in Forbes, for example, wealth expert Russ Alan Prince likened the success of the super-rich to Keyser 厂枚锄别鈥檚 heartless tenacity.
Examples of Keyser 厂枚锄别
Who uses Keyser 厂枚锄别?
Keyser 厂枚锄别 serves as a popular metaphor and allusion used by a variety of users across a range of contexts.
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of Keyser 厂枚锄别 like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of Keyser 厂枚锄别 that will help our users expand their word mastery.