Confessions

It's the kind of feeling all over again that makes it a delight to relive moments of a film that's just so steeped with brilliance. It's dark and it's disturbing, a psychological thriller to rival some of the best out there, tackling themes of poetic justice and revenge that's coolly served in perfect tones of subversion, grabbing you by the scruff of your neck with its extended hook from the start and lasting some thirty minutes, before things kick into full gear for a chilling, violent ride that's unflinching in its violence, laced with strong characters filled with perverted motivations all round.

Written and directed by Tetsuya Nakashima and based upon the novel by Kanae Minato, the story's extremely hypnotic and sprawls points of views from multiple characters, each weaved intrinsically with one another and all being uncannily hypnotic in its stylish execution. The hook wraps up everything you'd come to expect from a great thriller, and that riveting introductory classroom scene alone is worth the price of an admission ticket many times over, orchestrating its sound contrast design to perfection where it seems a teacher is unable to control her class, and is nonchalantly attempting to do so until a bombshell is dropped to elicit an automatic silence, and fear.

Takako Matsue (of The Hidden Blade and Villon's Wife fame) plays a schoolteacher whose young daughter was murdered by students identified in her class. Rather than challenging the judge's verdict and knowing jolly well that a juvenile is protected by the law against capital punishment, the plan she devices is so devious that it turns the class upside down turning classmates against the guilty, and yet still hitting them where it hurts most, slowly observing and scheming any exploited weaknesses. Probably the best strategy anyone can adopt when dealing with unspeakable evil, and it is this execution of her plan that forms the remainder of the film told from different perspectives in confessional style (hence the title), where a deeper character study gets presented, while smartly fusing social observations about the restlessness of today's misguided teenagers in wanting recognition and being one up against their peers.

Mothers seem to come into play, and the film provokes thought into this aspect of human nature that's so universal. A mother loses her child, another maintains her protective blindness fending provocative charges against her son, while yet another proudly obsesses with wanting the best from her kid that it becomes detrimental to his development. One knows about the power of Mother's Love and the extent they will go to protect their brood, and here the school teacher's severe loss becomes the catalyst for revenge best served cold, while also becoming pawns in a plan best unraveled when you watch the film.

Nakashima's assured direction keeps you glued to every gorgeous frame thanks to its beautiful cinematography and shots that make it picture perfect, supported by an excellent soundtrack to bolster the dark mood created visually, and I just fell in love with the plenty of slow motion used which brings a sense of calming rhythm that betrays the dark undertones that were constantly brewing in the narrative. There doesn't seem to be a wasted frame or scene in the film, each moving the narrative forward in an engaging manner, keeping you guessing what's the next curve ball to be thrown, and silently rooting for justice in whatever form to be meted out, and on the other hand cannot help but to check yourself since they're kids to begin with, albeit guilty ones whom the teacher chooses a punishment that will resonate deeply throughout their lives, which is obviously a very long road ahead.

The predominant cast of teenagers also performed their roles admirably since one can imagine the kind of thought process they have to go through to play characters who are basically mentally unsound for doing what they did, and frankly these aren't things that are far fetched given notable crimes committed by juveniles here too. The violence can be unsettling here for those with weak stomachs, not so much whether there's plenty of gore put on screen, but psychologically when you're made to crawl under the perpetrators' skins seeing things from their viewpoints.

Confessions lives up to every critical acclaim garnered thus far, and I too love this film enough to put it firmly in my shortlist as the best film of the year, where all the technical elements that make up filmmaking gelled perfectly together with excellent performances all round. A movie gorgeously filmed that justifies why I go to the movies. A definite recommendation!

This movie really is amazing and left me awestruck, it really is a frightening beauty with really good cinematography and visual elements for a Japanese movie. The plot unravels slowly while giving away certain hints of what is going on bit by bit and is done really well and is put together piece by piece in a outstanding manner. The students are way more obnoxious in this movie than I would have expected from a Asian middle school but to some degree it was necessary. This film really shows the ugly side of human nature how it's sometimes the weak that bully the people that is weaker than them. It was a little bit difficult to believe students in a Asian middle school would act obnoxious as they did in this movie, although I seen far worse in the US but it wasn't difficult to just go with it or stretched so far it was not believable at all. This has different elements put together in a well crafted manner and the psychological aspects of it is very well done, it may seem like a revenge movie or a movie about grief at first but that is only a part of it. What I really liked is how almost none of the characters is nothing like how they may seem at first. It's like you need to be in their shoes or their point of view in order to understand. If this movie was only about revenge than the film would have been over really quick and wouldn't have been as good and would have lacked the character study it needed, but the emphasis on different characters that were involved makes this movie brilliant with good psychological aspects to it. Hatred leads us to look at a very narrow view of things without looking at the whole picture and this is a part of what the plot to this is about. There is no simple and straightforward character in this which plays a big part in this story. This movie really does fit it's positive reputations and is well deserved of it, this is one of my favorite Japanese movie of 2010 from japan. Don't miss out on this brilliantly crafted movie.

9/10

Confessions, directed by one of my favorite Japanese directors, Tetsuya Nakashima, is one of the most disturbing and depressing movies I have watched this year. It is a psychological thriller of a grieving teacher turned cold-blooded avenger with a twisty master plan to pay back the students who were responsible for her daughter's death.

In the story, the major characters make confessions one by one. The more perspectives from which the murder is looked at, the more we know about the characters and their motives, which may remind the audience of A Stranger of Mine. As the story is unfolded, there are several surprising twists. While making confessions and sometimes touching on the subjects they are ashamed of, some characters refuse to accept the truth, tell lies and point the finger of blame at others to salve their conscience.

The director tries to explore the reasons why innocent children become evil teenagers with no conscience. Some seek attention because they are abandoned or physically abused by their parents. Some become vulnerable owing to their overprotective parents. Some feel lonely because they are nerds neglected and bullied by their peers. Some commit suicide or other crimes because they follow suit. Some tragedies are also attributed to the internet which allows people to gossip anonymously, the mass media which places too much emphasis on violence, and the law which exempts teenage murderers from being punished. Thanks to the convincing cast, the characters become lifelike.

The black-grey-and-white setting, which is very different form the flamboyance of Memories of Matsuko, is stifling and depressing. After watching the film, the images of crimson blood, white milk, snow-white sakura, the bleak classroom, the lifeless homes and the dimly lit school hall will linger in one's mind. Apart from these, the gloomy skies in the movie were reminiscent of the ones in Elephant by Gus Van Sant. Despite the ominous dark clouds gathering overheard, every cloud has a silver lining, which symbolizes that the director still believes in the goodness of human nature, despite its dark side. This belief is also reflected in the scene when the female teacher stares at the strawberry given by a kid and another scene in which she says "your new life has begun".

The mesmerizing classical music, spiced with a hypnotizing female voice, not only creates a shocking contrast to the disturbing scenes shot in slow motion, but also adds eeriness to the story. The sound effects are also memorable. When the female teacher puts down the last stroke of the word LIFE on the blackboard, the ear-piercing sound chilled me the bone. When the bubble pops, we feel hopeless.

The film would have been more gripping if the first confession had been shorter and less talky. Besides, the CG images at the end are mediocre. Also, it is a difficult movie for the faint-hearted to sit through.

On the whole, Confessions is a darkly disturbing, visually stunning and thought provoking movie ruthlessly exposing the root of various teenage problems and the dark side of human nature. After watching the movie, I left the cinema with a heavy heart. It conjured up images of several parricides committed by Hong Kong teenagers recently and I pondered on what had happened to our post 90's generation.

A good review doesn't always have to be long, and there are really just a few words needed to describe this movie. Stunningly beautiful cinography, dark, disturbing, and yet Great! That being said, don't dive into this thing if you plan on watching a good fast revenge flick, because this was mentally challenging. You always have to sit analyzing everything that's happening from beginning to end, and there's really not a lot of breakes.

I had read a few of the reviews here before watching this movie, but I had no idea the movie was going to be like it was, watch it to find out, most definitely worth 2~ hours of your life.

CONFESSIONS is one of the most savage, brutal and poignant revenge stories I have ever seen. It doesn't start off all that great, but it by the end I was in awe. The movie begins in a Japanese classroom on the final day of classes before the spring break and the remainder of the movie are the events that follow the fateful day in this classroom.

The point of view switches numerous times throughout to different people affected by the event in the beginning. As the movie progresses you revisit past scenes from different character's perspectives but the scenes are never monotonous because you know much more the second time around. Much like an onion, CONFESSIONS is multi-faceted and there is much to discover and re-discover as each subsequent layer is peeled back.

A beautiful thing about this movie, at least for me, is how wildly my sympathy flip-flopped. Don't take sides too adamantly because as you learn more and more about the characters and events of the movie your sympathy too is bound to jump ship to the point where you're not totally sure who to side with. CONFESSIONS challenges you in this way. Some may find it frustrating but it just added to CONFESSIONS's charm and wit.

Unrelentingly dark, this movie is bound to incite feelings of bleakness and perhaps is not suited to those with a weak heart. The subject matter is heavy, the characters are morally-reprehensible and the feel of the movie is wholly somber – from the greys and dull blues which saturate each and every scene to the melancholy (albeit perfectly-suited) soundtrack which works its way infectiously into your mind and makes the horrific scenes before your eyes resonate deeply.

I will not spiel on for much longer, but in closing; the acting is top-notch; the storytelling is captivating; the cinematography is gorgeous; and the touches of violence and blood are done in taste and to immense effect – never feeling gratuitous.

I have seen many Japanese films but this one takes the cake as one of the best I have ever seen. If what I've said so far sounds convincing enough definitely give this movie a shot because I am rather hard to please and it did not let me down an ounce.