Mimi-16

Holy... ( pardon the accidental joke ) I just watched "I Confess" for the first time. I've seen almost all of Hitchcock's films, from the silent era onward, and somehow missed this one. It's a film movie-buffs never bring up when speaking of Hitchcock.

I can't believe this. I love his films, but few of his films truly speak from deep in the heart, beyond the terror factor. This one explores some very dark places, as most of his films do. But "I Confess" goes to places where most people's sense of "sacred" ( biblically or romantically ) are afraid to go or question.

Like "Notorious", this film questions the idea of faith, love, devotion, hope, redemption, and forgiveness, on so many MANY levels, from almost every single character in this masterpiece. My intellectual and emotional mind were pounding a mile a minute as this story unfolded.

The cinematography was...well, perfect. For the most part, it wasn't shot as a murder-mystery or terror-tale. Hitchcock, at least for me, had this filmed as a love story for most of its running length. Very sneaky. But the performances and editing were very much high intensity and believable. I thought, since Hitchcock ( wisely ) didn't want to have a priest playing "action-hero" in this story, directing and filming most of it that way, made total sense. This method under-scored the priest's dignity, the love between he and his former lover's character, and the love between he and his higher faith.

Yeah... This one is most definitely Wonder Bread™ style of "we're number one, we're number one" USA flag-waving. Patriarchial "Morning in America" fluff .

This movie tries not to be mean and frightful during war-time. Unlike most of the WWII melodramas and action films that typically come from the west, it relies on the HallMark Greeting Card/Boys Life Magazine view of dark and light, and not The Shadow Knows pulp fear most of this era's wartime drama relies upon.

Too often, this film pulls what politicians through the ages (most embarrassingly right now ) in skirting issues with massaging its audience's ego to ensure no one questions any flaws in the image of any "greater good". A trick to get basically decent people to fall in step and accept or perform some horrible things all in the name of Homefront, Homeland, and the like.

I do understand when it was made and what was happening to the world. But I also understand these films were made in close partnership with our own propaganda offices in US Government. Even in a war that had to be fought in its time, this film's simplistic, condescending emotional symbolism, and manipulation, are exactly the smoke and mirrors that are used right now on this generation's "every person USA".

It tells it audience to be adults and stand up. But more often than not, it tells us (like ill- informed children) to lock in step. Not only in needed physical action to "fight the good fight", but also in our intellectual understanding of complex issues at home at around the world. Hmmm... Just like the current echo-machinery. Some things never change...in a country too enamored by celebrity, wealth, authority, and power... sigh.

And I agree with some about the plot. You know exactly what will happen to everyone in the very first 10 minutes of this film. You really do know everything that will happen.

Lastly, in it's well intentioned "understanding" of the Great Melting Pot, this film performs MAJOR racial/ethnic/sexual insults regularly. I thought I was going to puke during many scenes and lines that, however tamed down, were just quieter racial and sexual stereotyping, still echoing throughout America today, by either well meaning and mostly caucasian "moderate" liberals or conservatives.