True Confessions (1981)

Truly Dreadful Film

I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

Highly Overrated But Still Good

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Robert De Niro as a monsignor with the Los Angeles archdiocese and Robert Duvall as his somewhat-estranged Irish-Catholic brother, a seen-it-all police detective working on a murder case in 1940s Los Angeles. Following a local priest's death as a customer at a brothel, a prostitute's corpse (cut in two) is found dumped in a vacant lot; the detective and his partner follow a trail of dirty dealings that lead back to the church--with his brother's affairs under suspicion. Dour adaptation of John Gregory Dunne's novel, by Dunne and wife Joan Didion, given a tactless treatment by director Ulu Grosbard, who allows the camera to exploit the majority of the female characters (both living and dead)--and for what purpose, titillation? An R-rating? Grosbard also fails to shape the drama at hand, so that the third-act confrontations have little effect. De Niro (handsomely carrying a bit of his "Raging Bull" weight) doesn't seem to be invested in this role; he's playing a holy hypocrite, but there are no other layers to the man. Also, his scenes dealing with the church and his fellow priests or performing services are deadly dull. Duvall at least has the benefit of salty dialogue exchanges (and colorful interaction with scene stealer Kenneth McMillan, who has wily eyebrows); but his acting, too, is flattened out by the handling, while his smile looks forced and desperate. Perhaps a sharper final edit might have solved Grosbard's problems with pacing and narrative, but what's on the screen is curiously underwhelming. The fine production values and technical aspects are a plus, Georges Delerue's score is classy, and several of the supporting performers (particularly Rose Gregorio as a madam and Charles Durning as a construction czar and lay Catholic) give the film a boost. ** from ****

True Confessions is a 1981 crime that was loosely based on the still unsolved Black Dahlia murder case of 1947.It stars Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall together with Charles Durning,Cyril Cusack,Burgess Meredith and Kenneth McMillan.Los Angeles detective Tom Spellacy is assigned to investigate the death of a priest.It was stated that the priest suffered from a heart attack after being served by a prostitute.The young Catholic monsignor Des Spellacy,who happens to be Tom's brother is apparently uncooperative with the investigation as he was currying a favor with crooked contractor to finance the expansion of his church.But they finally come together after the murder of a hooker.This film was directed by Ulu Grosbard deals with themes such as power, ambition, and hypocrisy.This was obviously was a fascinating movie.Considering that we have two of the finest actors in De Niro and Duvall,it should have become a classic considering that it deals with the corruption that involves the Catholic Church and police force. Also,it provides a perceptive character study of two brothers that belong to two institutions wherein integrity should has been maintained.Unfortunately,a lot of waiting period scenes made it less interesting that it was suppose to be.But definitely,it was definitely one of the most entertaining and intelligent films ever made during the 80's.

This one is probably less well known than THE LAST TYCOON despite the star cast - De Niro, Duvall and Durning. The confrontation scene between Durning and Duvall was great - it was pretty violent and ugly, the two of them sort of exploded on screen. I wish the film had more explosive scenes like that. Despite the understated tone of the movie, I was never bored. And i guess guess that is mainly because of the mesmerizing performances by De Niro and Duvall. De Niro must have done this right after THE RAGING BULL. Here he plays a solemn but ambitious priest in direct contrast to his aggressive detective brother played by Duvall.The film was based on John Gregory Dunne's novel and was adapted by none other than Joan Didion (PANIC IN NEEDLE PARK) and Dunne who was her husband.

True Confessions (1981) *** (out of 4) Entertaining if ultimately unsatisfying movie about two brothers, one a monsignor (Robert DeNiro) and the other a L.A. detective (Robert Duvall) who just happens to be investigating the murder of a prostitute who was cut in half and dumped on the side of the road. As the detective digs deeper into the investigation he learns that his brother's friend (Charles Durning) knew the girl and that both of them might know more than they're saying. Based loosely on the Black Dahlia case, this mystery-drama has always been hit with mostly negative reviews and if you go into the movie expecting something on the actual case then more than likely you're going to walk away disappointed. I wish I understood what the director and screenwriter were going for but I'm honestly lost there. For the most part this film appears to be some sort of character study between the two brothers and the actual case itself only comes up periodically throughout the running time. Yes, it plays a good part in the story but it seems to be used for the brothers and not so much for the case or events. I know a lot of people have complained about the ending but I don't fault it too much but of course I won't spoil it for those who haven't seen the film. The deliberately slow pacing is probably going to disappoint most people but this too is something that didn't bother me all that much. There are several positive things in the film that makes it worth viewing and one is the beautiful reconstruction of the 1940s Los Angeles. If you've seen any of the film noir titles from this period you're going to think that this here is one of them. It's always hard to recapture the cast but I thought the film's attention to detail worked wonderfully well in its favor because you never once feel as if you're seeing a film from 1981 made to look like the 40s. Everything from the sets to the cars to the outfits make you feel as if you're really in the 40s. Another major plus are the performances with the two leads clearly leading the way. You'd expect someone like Duvall to play the priest and DeNiro to be the hard-boiled detective but I think the film works even better with the actors in roles you wouldn't expect to see them in. DeNiro does just fine in his first film after RAGING BULL and the way he can act without saying a word is what makes his character work so well. Duvall easily steals the film as the cop who is willing to take bribes yet at the same time he has a moral code that he's constantly fighting himself over. Durning is perfect as the scumbag "good guy" and Ed Flanders is great as Duvall's partner. Burgess Meredith is strong in his few scenes as is Rose Gregorio as a prostitute. Considering the two legendary actors I think many will view this film ultimately as a disappointment and I certainly understand that. It seems like the movie doesn't want to do anything in particular and it seems to not want to be really be about anything. The direction is strange to say the least and the story itself never seems to know what it wants to do but I still think there's enough here to recommend the film for fans of the actors.