True Confessions (1981)
★★★ — True Confessions (1981)
True Confessions is adapted from John Gregory Dunne's 1977 novel, which Dunne co-wrote for the screen alongside his wife Joan Didion. The story draws loose inspiration from the real Black Dahlia murder case of 1940s Los Angeles, transplanting that era's corruption and Catholic guilt into a period setting that sat somewhat against the grain of early 1980s Hollywood. Director Ulu Grosbard was a theatre man by training, better known for smaller character pieces like Straight Time (1978) and later Georgia (1995), and this was among his more ambitious studio productions. United Artists, already reeling from the Heaven's Gate disaster the previous year, needed reliable names, and pairing De Niro with Duvall was a reasonable bet on two actors then at the peak of their critical reputations.
True Confessions feels like a crime drama that got lost in the ‘80s and only just clawed its way out. De Niro and Duvall do their usual men-of-few-words-but-many-secrets thing, which is solid, if not exactly groundbreaking. The setup’s promising (a priest (De Niro) investigates a murder linked to his Cop brother (Duvall) but the film never quite shakes the feeling that it’s retreading ground already nailed by better movies (Chinatown, The Godfather, take your pick). The plot hinges on corruption, guilt, and the kind of twist that makes you shrug rather than gasp. There’s a grimy L.A. vibe that works, and the brothers’ dynamic has weight, but the script leans too hard on noir clichés: shadowy backroom deals, femme fatales with hearts of… well, still mostly stone, and a finale that fizzles instead of explodes. Cinematography’s moody, the score’s serviceable, and the church they film in is Familiar. Shoutout to the Kill Bill fans who’ll squint and go, “Wait, isn’t that the…?” Yep, same dusty chapel, decades before the Bride sliced her way through it.
Rating: ★★★ | Year: 1981 | Watched: 2025-06-22
Where to watch (UK)
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Physical: Amazon UK
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Related on Movies With Macca
More with Robert De Niro: The Untouchables (1987) · The King of Comedy (1982) · Shark Tale (2004) · Little Fockers (2010)
More from the 1980s: Nightmare City (1980) · A Better Tomorrow (1986) · Style Wars (1983) · Garlic Is as Good as Ten Mothers (1980)
More crime: A Better Tomorrow (1986) · Angst (1983) · Stolen Face (1952) · Cairo Station (1958)
More drama: Viy (1967) · Wonder (2017) · A Better Tomorrow (1986) · Beautiful Boy (2018)
