I confess (1953)

Languge: English

Actors: Montgomery Clift, Anne Baxter, Carl Malden

Director: Sir Alfred Hitchcock

The legend has it that it took 8 years for Sir Hitchcock to come up with the script for this film. This one is a drama involving a Christian priest. A man confesses to the priest about a murder he committed. The priest does his pastoral duties well, only to land as the suspect in the police net. He is later tried for the murder with the actual criminal testifying against him. In spite of all this the priest is acquitted for lack of evidence and then comes the mandatory Hitchcockian twist that gives an edge of the seat end to the movie.

Montgomery Clift comes across as a very serious priest, stiff, expressionless at times. I wonder if this is what they call ‘method’ acting. Makes me think, may be a James Steward would have been more enterprising.

And now for the customary Hitchcock appearence... This happens in the start, right after the credit titles. Sir Hitchcock is seen walking across the stairs.

The music director of this movie is Dimitri Tiomkin, one of the 3 music directors who did multiple films with Sir Hitchcock. Tiomkin composed for 4 of his movies.

Whatever said… This is a good movie, typical of Hitchcock.