I Confess

Hitchcock fans seemed to have completed forgotten "I Confess," an understated drama played out in Quebec City involving a priest (Montgomery Cliff), a murder, a confession and a police detective (Karl Malden). It's a solid drama without the silly excesses that Hitchcock sometimes employs. Here, he's working as a director and has a wonderful cast of professionals to tell the story. Shot on-location with nice and tight camera work by Robert Burks who did numerous films with Hitchcock and an excellent cast, this is a really good flick. Not a masterpiece but far, far better than the average Hitchcock and if you're fan you want to check this film out.

It’s hard to understand why “The Wrong Man” was even made. Based on the true story of Manny Balestrero (Henry Fonda), a bass player in the band at New York’s Stork Club, who is arrested after he tries to take a loan out on his wife’s life insurance. The workers at the insurance agency positively identify him as the man who robbed them. Then the owner of a liquor store identifies him as the man who robbed him. The trial ends in a mistrial and while the prosecution and defense prepare for the new trial the real culprit is caught. It’s all a case of mistaken identity.

In real life, this would be a harrowing story but other true stories of the missteps of justice show it in much more graphic detail. Henry Hathaway’s “Call Northside 777” with James Stewart and Lee J. Cobb is also based on a true story. In the Hathaway film, an innocent man is sent to prison for killing a police officer. The man’s mother has spent years washing floors to raise the money for a new investigation and takes an ad in the newspaper. The editor sees the ad and assigns a dubious reporter to see if there’s a story there. “Call Northside 777” at least touches on the possibility of police corruption in the conviction of the innocent man.

One of the most egregious cases of real-life police collusion in the railroading of an innocent man also occurred in New York City with the headline-making “Career Girl Murders.” For background on that, go here.

Another twist on the innocent man almost charged with a crime is in “Under Suspicion” with Gene Hackman and Morgan Freeman. It’s not a well-produced or directed flick but it’s an odd bird and well worth seeing.

See “Call Northside 777” or “Under Suspicion.”

"Frenzy" is another film that Hitchcock die-hards have given up on and while it isn't his usual fluff, it's far better than most critics say it is.

Another film shot on location -- in the very open street green grocers that Hitchcock's father worked when Hitchcock was a boy -- it tells the story of one friend -- a serial killer -- setting up his best friend to take the fall for a series of murders that the first friend committed.

After a series of flops after "Psycho" -- "The Birds," "Marnie," "Torn Curtain," and "Topaz" -- Hitchcock passed on star power and returned to London to shoot "Frenzy" with British theatre actors. And much of it is spot on -- as the Brits say -- utilizing tracking shots and interesting camera work. Is that scene where the camera tracks back from the door the inspiration for Antonioni's closing shot for "The Passenger"? Maybe, maybe not. But visually there is a lot more going on in this film than in many, many other later Hitchcock films. This is not a film of obvious gimmicks (although Hitchcock's deep-seated misogyny is still present in the dialog and action) and while it does use the beaten-to-death device of the innocent man on the run, it is far, far better than the usual drivel that Hitchcock cranked out.

Be warned: There is graphic violence, bare breasts, pubic areas and the like throughout the film. This is Hitchcock's most graphic work and if you're turned off by mature content, don't watch this film.

"Frenzy" also resurrects a theme Hitchcock employed once before. In "Frenzy" it's a police inspector who believes that it could be possible that the wrong man was convicted for a series of murders. "Murder" is a somewhat different story.

In "Murder" shot over 40 years prior, Hitchcock has an upperclass Englishman on the jury of a woman accused of murder. Although Sir John votes to convict, he has serious qualms about the guilt of the woman and begins investigating on his own. A bit of a cozy wrapped around the redeemable -- or innocent girl -- "Murder" is now a creaky tale of the benevolence of the gentry toward the pitiful lower classes.

Let it rest where it is.