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Can someone explain the 'Suspect Zero' concept to me? (spoilers)

posted 9 years ago by mobocracy
4 replies | jump to latest

I found myself intrigued by this film but also had trouble following it and had to watch it in two viewings, so something about it was lost on me.

Ben Kingsley was some kind of remote viewer, supposedly formerly a profiler with the FBI. Kingsley is tracking and killing serial killers, such as the fat salesman in the diner. Eckhart is an FBI guy sent to the minor leages for some excess involving a serial killer(?) suspect he dragged across the border illegally. Kingsley kills him, too, as part of his plot to get Eckhart involved with him.

This is about where it lost coherence to me. I'm guessing that Suspect Zero was some other serial killer that Eckhart (only?) believed was responsible for hundreds(?) of unsolved kidnappings/disappearances. Kingsley tracks this killer using remote viewing and his viewing indicates Eckhart solves the case AND also kills him (Kingsley).

Is that remotely right? Or was Suspect Zero some other kind concept, a "first" serial killer of some kind?

What was Eckhart's relationship to the Icarus project?

Was Kingsley being controlled by someone else in his remote viewing? He seemed to be getting instructions from the outside. Or was he just some kind of crazy savant who had gone over the edge as a profiler?

[–] TheJigsaw 9 years ago

You got it right, good summary.

Eckhart had nothing to do with Icarus. Why did you assume he did?

Kingsley was working on his own. The instructions on tape, most likely from the FBI/CIA sessions, helped him focus while remote viewing.

[–] ginger-51 9 years ago

Wait, Eckhart DID have a connection to project Icarus. Or at least, his character did. He was also a remote "seer". He had the same profile they look for: heightened awareness, above-average/genius intelligence, chronic migraines, no long-term relationships. He and ben kingsley were part of the 5 icarus project subjects who were used to track serial killers instead of gaining general intelligence as most of the other subjects were, which is why they were both so traumatized.

I couldn't have imagined that whole part of the story? Maybe the idea was planted in my brain when I was listening to the tape of a person speaking in monotone while weird sounds are humming in the background. But who knows.

[–] MagroxVulimere 9 years ago

Eckhart's character was never a member of Project Icarus. However, as you stated, he did have the same profile as the members and thus had some unharnessed remote viewing capabilities.

[–] Gary (60) 7 years ago

I thought that O'Ryan had zeroed in on Suspect Zero but didn't think he could stop him himself. And he had realized, also though remote viewing, that not only was Mackelway a seer also but had the means to stop SZ. O'Ryan also realized that Mackelway did not recognize his own talent, for whatever reason, and thought he could and should help him to.