Confession

Review

Confession (Thriller) (2022)

Director: David Beton

Writer: David Beton

Stars: Stephen Moyer, Colm Meaney, Clare-Hope Ashitey, Kris Johnson

During the late hours of the evening, a wounded man forces entry into Father Peter’s Church. After demanding to lock all the entrances, the true meaning behind this man’s visit is slowly uncovered with a final confession.

David Beton has written and directed this subdued and simplistic thriller using a single church as its set. Having produced and written a handful of films throughout the 2010’s it could be interesting to see what this project has in store.

With a dramatic opening and a hallowed yet dim setting, ‘’Confession’’ puts some talented actors together In a mostly dialogue-driven narrative. Wisely using the limited space it has to intrigue audiences, it doesn’t try to do much more than it is to begin with. It could work quite well as an abridged version of what might be a larger whole, but without something grander, it does mostly seem to keep meandering on about a confession most won’t be very interested in.

It mostly really isn’t bad and quite enjoyable. Still, Beton fails to capture interest throughout as the story's development is delivered chiefly through Moyer’s character Victor speaking to Father Peter (Colm Meaney). The reasoning behind Victor being at the church becomes clear, but the problem is whether the viewer cares enough to hear him out. Such scenes could work with more build-up, picturing flashbacks, for example. Such a lack of visual engagement just creates a lacking result. The soundtrack managed to capture some good moments but eventually became too ambience-focused, overpowering some of the dramatic narrative.

After the initial hour, the confession itself to Father Pete just ended up feeling like it was piling on plot twists to lead to a dissatisfactory confrontation that didn’t manage to shine dramatically.

Verdict

I’ve got to confess; this film could’ve definitely been better.

5,7