Film: Confessions
Release date: 25th April 2011
Certificate: 15
Running time: 106 mins
Director: Tetsuya Nakashima
Starring: Takako Matsu, Masaki Okada, Yoshino Kimura
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Studio: Third Window
Format: DVD
Country: Japan
Genre-busting auteur, Tetsuya Nakashima, returns like a scalded cat with Confessions, adapted from the award-winning debut novel by Kanae Minato.
Still high on the sugar-coated ripples of critical acclaim with his previous features, Kamikaze Girls (2004) and Memories of Matsuko (2006), Nakashima ditches his trademark candy-coloured worlds, replacing them with a sinister universe contaminated by disease, bullying and murder.
Will Nakashima’s delicious new direction hit the sweet spot once again, or will it leave the audience with sweet Fanny Adams?
Yuko Moriguchi (Takako Matsu) is a middle-school teacher whose 4-year-old daughter is found dead in the school’s swimming pool. Convinced that two of her students were responsible for her daughter's murder, she returns to her classroom and begins a final lesson the students will never forget.
Confessions spill quicker than the milk, as each suspect reveals motives, allies, and a disturbing lack of sympathy. Will Yuko be satisfied with their acceptance of blame, knowing only too well that they aren’t old enough to be truly punished for their actions, or will she decide to end her teaching career by going out with a bang?
All films should be this pretty. Exploring the dark side of adolescence with wit and delicacy, Confessions creates a disturbingly bleak atmosphere that more than compensates for a sparse plot, further complemented by an indie soundtrack and stunning visuals by director Tetsuya Nakashima.
A film more about mood than substance, ordinary teen irritants are blended with the extreme so seamlessly here it’s frightening, as we see when, early on, Student A – a chilling turn by Yukito Nishii as Shuya – reveals his unrivalled genius by creating contraptions to torture cats and dogs and another electrifying invention to stop purse-snatchers.
The other students may be flirting with the opposite sex and questioning the joys of puberty, but apart from an orchestrated fling halfway through proceedings, Shuya is far too busy devising ways to inflict pain and suffering on those that have failed to spot his superiority, praying the mother that abandoned him finally notices him.
Meanwhile, Student B (Naoki) is so disgusted with himself for allowing his trust to be abused, he accepts his punishment, takes it on the chin, then spends the rest of the film transforming into a caveman, intent on scrubbing away any past mistakes, his mud-encrusted body a constant reminder of the horrors that went before.
It’s certainly a haunting tale that will linger long in the memory, helped by a dry sense of humour running all the way through it – a rendition of KC Band’s ‘That’s The Way I Like It’ is absolutely brilliant. Gruesomeness and giggles combine perfectly, culminating in a genuinely explosive denouement.
Takako Matsu’s performance as the scarred teacher is deftly restrained: her intense opening monologue is so gripping you’ll question how thirty minutes have zipped by. But Nakashima masters such a lengthy confession with ease, cutting to cold and harsh visual flashbacks, classroom mayhem and a self-contained story so beautiful it’s almost a disappointment when the new term begins.
Clearly helped by an artist who has already mastered the form, Nakashima soaks Kanae Minato’s script in such lush imagery you’ll gladly drown in its dreamy slo-mo sequences (at its stunning best in the pouring rain), entwined with wide-eyed acts of violence that will make the journey uncomfortable but compelling.
The violence may not always be graphic in nature – upsetting any gorehounds among you – and although pleasantly understated, when it arrives, it certainly makes a bigger splash than the painfully poetic demise of Yuko’s daughter.
Without showing anything overtly, Confessions projects an atmosphere of palpable evil and menace with minimal locations and fuss. With fine-tuned characterizations helping a plot structure that could become confusing if not dealt with so brilliantly, this sophisticated shocker is let down only by the plot’s thinness.
This, of course, is also a horror, so add to all this dramatic brilliance the countless memorable scenes that surprise with their sudden brutality, add some brilliant performances, especially by the children (who in their right mind would want to teach this lot?), and it’s obvious the only confession this movie needs to make is that it’s the best film of 2011.
Bursting with inventive visuals and a slew of nasty surprises, Confessions is a beautiful piece of work harmonized with a cracking soundtrack, brilliant screenplay and wonderful performances.
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