Sounds like a lot of time for an hour and forty minute movie, doesn't it? If you think about it, that is only three sets of ten minutes. Six sets of five minutes. Thirty sets of one minute, those are gone in an instant.
Yet, Confessions (2010) makes every second worth its weight in silver, simultaneously making those thirty minutes pass too quickly yet like we still have too long to go. The shocking part of it is that it is a near-monologue from the very moment it starts, until the thirty minutes clock in. A monologue that filled with exposition shouldn't work, it should not — such is the law of storytelling and filmmaking. A dead rattle of a great idea that many people would be turned off from experience, a death sentence. Think about it, would you sit and listen that long? Much to the chagrin of puritans and to our delight however, it pulls it off in such a fascinating way and I can’t ever forget it.
And now, I just want to talk 'bout it.
The monologue a horrifying tragedy so nonchalantly told to an uncaring crowd of students that bit by bit become enraptured by the unfolding story, occasionally distracted, then occasionally horrified. An unraveling mystery presented by a teacher who begins by telling the students that she will be leaving her position as a teacher after this last class they have together. While the kids celebrate, she appears impassive to it — resigned? Or perhaps accustomed to it? The question lingers from the beginning, but it is sure to be answered soon enough.
At first, it all seems like tangents that spread out nowhere but what it really is doing is setting the tone, the roots of the conflict, and more importantly getting us familiar with the stunning cinematography and the language it uses to convey information to you and I, the viewers. Drab in darkness and blue tones, a backing track that seems to ominously get louder as the monologue evolves, stops abruptly and starts back up, the sound design nothing short of auditive excellence to support the story we are getting involved in. Through the use of stellar composition, consistent style of cutting, pace, rhythm and impeccable acting, we become like the once rowdy students in the classroom. Half-listening, phone up to write down notes or distract ourselves until the killing starts. Then at one point, we put the phone down and start to really listen, getting up from our slouching to truly read the subtitles. Immersed, involved -- we must know how this story ends, and why the woman has chosen to tell them all of this.
The content of the monologue in itself would drag in the hands of a less than stellar cast and director. Hell, it may still be if you're a certain kind of person that gets impatient, but it ultimately develops in a satisfying way for a good majority of people who comment on review sites about it. It genuinely is exposition if you strip all the decor, it is explicitly telling us whatever we need to know before we proceed. It even, with a clairvoyant eye, tells the foreign audiences of the core theme of the entire thing. Children, in Japan, can get away with crime with a slap on the wrist if they are juvenile; adults who get accused by ill-intentioned children can get a harsh, life-ruining punishment. Important context that would appear on one of those 'MOVIE EXPLAINED' videos, and imperative for us to know considering what bomb will be and what the ripples of that bomb will create. It does it all with such confidence that it's terrifying.
Gifted with the ability to see beyond what the students are hearing, we start to pick up the pieces but we still don't have all the information that the students seem to have. You both are in the dark in very distinct ways, so when that punchline comes.
We all fall to it. There is no laughter but horrifying gasps, from the classroom and you. And that only makes twenty-nine minutes of the movie.
God help the children, for they are on a ride to hell.
I cannot expand more on this for the sake of the experience remaining as spoiler free as possible. I implore you to watch this movie as blind as you can, with subtitles instead of dub (if there even is one). Japanese movies get a lot of credit for their masterful construction and Confessions proves this point, however it is often overlooked in the list of Japanese movies to watch. It is truly an experience I wish I could do all over again, so now I'm passing it to you in hopes that you experience it before any tiktok, short or AI movie explained video gets to you.