I would never have thought that Alfred Hitchcock had a strict Roman Catholic upbringing, including training with the Jesuits. It's one of the interesting things revealed in a special feature on the DVD release of "I Confess". The movie allows Hitch to explore the sanctity of the Catholic sacrament of Penance, and a priest's holy vow to maintain the confidentiality of the confessional. At times, the way Father Michael Logan (Montgomery Clift) remains true to that vow seems awkward and hesitant, casting suspicion on himself as a murderer, especially when it's revealed that he had a personal relationship with one of the church's parishioners before he became a priest.
There was one point when I thought Hitchcock was throwing the audience a curve when the real murderer Keller (O.E. Hasse) taunts Logan with - "You can't tell them as long as you are a priest, can you?" It struck me at that point that the look on Logan's face might have had him consider giving up the priesthood, adding even more torment to his dilemma. Of course that was not to be, and rightly, as it would have been a cheap way out. In fact the revelation of Keller's guilt could probably not have been handled in any other way than the manner in which it occurred. But if Keller's conscience couldn't convince him that he was doomed to hellfire for the initial murder, and then setting up a priest for it, how was he going to reconcile himself with the Lord for killing his own wife?
Cleverly, Hitchcock keeps the viewer's attention shifting in different directions; when Ruth Grandfort states to Father Logan 'We're safe" after learning of Villete's murder, one imagines all kinds of clandestine intimacies between the two. The revelation of the back story clears Logan on that count, but he still remains on the hook for the crime as long as he maintains his priestly obligations.
This would not be the only film in which director Hitchcock would explore Catholic themes, his 1956 film "The Wrong Man" would make use of overt religious symbolism in telling the true story of a man accused of a robbery and how his faith was a factor in exposing the real criminal. Both movies are among Hitch's less well known, and hence under-appreciated gems. Both capture a noirish feel that isn't generally a characteristic of his American films, with a sense of uncertainty and discomfort that pervades throughout. Both are recommended, Hitchcock fan or not.
While watching, keep an eye out for the poster promoting Humphrey Bogart's "The Enforcer" at the movie house. It too happens to be a murder mystery where we know the identity of the killer up front, as the story's protagonist searches for a way to expose him.
There was one point when I thought Hitchcock was throwing the audience a curve when the real murderer Keller (O.E. Hasse) taunts Logan with - "You can't tell them as long as you are a priest, can you?" It struck me at that point that the look on Logan's face might have had him consider giving up the priesthood, adding even more torment to his dilemma. Of course that was not to be, and rightly, as it would have been a cheap way out. In fact the revelation of Keller's guilt could probably not have been handled in any other way than the manner in which it occurred. But if Keller's conscience couldn't convince him that he was doomed to hellfire for the initial murder, and then setting up a priest for it, how was he going to reconcile himself with the Lord for killing his own wife?
Cleverly, Hitchcock keeps the viewer's attention shifting in different directions; when Ruth Grandfort states to Father Logan 'We're safe" after learning of Villete's murder, one imagines all kinds of clandestine intimacies between the two. The revelation of the back story clears Logan on that count, but he still remains on the hook for the crime as long as he maintains his priestly obligations.
This would not be the only film in which director Hitchcock would explore Catholic themes, his 1956 film "The Wrong Man" would make use of overt religious symbolism in telling the true story of a man accused of a robbery and how his faith was a factor in exposing the real criminal. Both movies are among Hitch's less well known, and hence under-appreciated gems. Both capture a noirish feel that isn't generally a characteristic of his American films, with a sense of uncertainty and discomfort that pervades throughout. Both are recommended, Hitchcock fan or not.
While watching, keep an eye out for the poster promoting Humphrey Bogart's "The Enforcer" at the movie house. It too happens to be a murder mystery where we know the identity of the killer up front, as the story's protagonist searches for a way to expose him.