I Confess, a review by Jon
I Confess (1953)
4 out of 5
Father Logan (Montgomery Clift) hears the confession of a murderer, Keller (O.E. Hasse), and urges him to turn himself in. Instead he stands by as helpless Father Logan himself is suspected of the crime and unable to tell the wily Inspector Larrue (Karl Malden) the truth. Hitchcock must have relished this plot, expanded from a play. It’s an ingenious conceit to trap a priest within his own belief system, unable to reveal anything he heard in confession, with lots of margin to turn the screws on both the characters and viewer! From the simplicity of that central theme, the story unfolds gracefully, revealing a compelling motive for Father Logan to have actually done the crime.
In Montgomery Clift, Hitchcock has the perfect lead. Clift was the original method actor and a controversial choice, apparently causing some issues on set, but still, it suited the role. There isn’t a glimmer of doubt in his eyes, except when he walks the picturesque Canadian town alone, and even then it is implied he is considering turning in his frock, not the confessor.
He is never judgmental or emotional. All we see is a man willing to accept whatever fate is laid out. This is an excellent depiction of faith and sacrifice, and Logan is a heroic character to rival Atticus Finch, especially given that Keller is German and Logan an ex-soldier. It's criminal that such a character is not more well known and makes this one of the most underrated Hitchcock films.
Clift is ably supported by Hasse as the nervy Keller, and the late Karl Malden who is typically superb as the Inspector barely hiding his glee when he has the scent. The scene with the two of them in Larrue’s office is wonderful. The other main role is Anne Baxter as Logan’s ex-lover and potential motive. She’d recently won an Oscar for All About Eve, but this is a warmer, if simpler, role. Still the plot twists around her brilliantly as she unwittingly digs Logan in deeper while undermining her own marriage to Roger Dann. Mind you, he is a bit of wet blanket anyway, perhaps the weakest character.
The film seems to lose a lot of energy during the courtroom sequence (thankfully still much better than the method used in Spellbound), as it can’t help but repeat a lot of what we already know, but the story still has a couple of twists and it’s fascinating to see how Logan still doesn’t condemn Keller, not even with a mere glance. Apparently the subject of much discussion with the Catholic savvy censors.
A key to Baxter’s story is a flashback sequence which compares to Stage Fright as it is also subjective and open to interpretation because it is strictly from her point of view. Not just a technical theme, it suits the narrative in that it does not specifically explain Clift's reasons for becoming a priest and keeps him enigmatic. It’s an interesting break of pace from Hitchcock because it is so bright and romantic! He even uses slow motion at one point.
The rest of the film compares with Shadow of a Doubt. It is beautifully lit, with real locations and nothing flashy, but just solid, efficient quality revolving around character, not least at its most potent during Logan’s walk. After an ironic start with road signs, it settles for an overall serious, nourish tone, but it is very compelling throughout. Interestingly, it finishes as Hitchcock often likes to do, on a stage. But this time there is no audience. I'm not sure what to make of that, if anything.
There’s a quote in the making of which is worth remembering throughout this marathon:
“a bad film is a photograph of people talking; a Hitchcock film is a photograph of people thinking”. (From Alfred Hitchcock Marathon on July 24th, 2009)
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May 02, 2024, 11:48:45 PM
