Review: ‘Confessional,’ a claustrophobic and tortured affair

Secrets always have a way of being exposed. You can bury them six-feet deep, but sooner or later, someone will dig them up again. An 85-minute chiller, Confessional excavates an array of sordid, drunken, and murderous affairs ⏤ intentionally shot and presented like a film student’s first full-length feature, for better or worse ⏤ and its many revelations will either leave you breathless or simply nodding your head. Written by Jennifer Wolfe (Struck, The Obstacle) and directed by Brad T. Gottfred (Orgies and the Meaning of Life, Sex and Love Conspire to Destroy the World!), it is a claustrophobic, loosely-wound showcase of seven tortured, and often quite privileged, college kids whose desperation to hide the truth nearly eats them alive.

When two students turn up dead, an unnamed blackmailer lures seven students via text to a confession booth located in an old psychology building. The single location, a matted room decorated with spikes and various hidden cameras, seems a fitting enough spot to exhaust the characters, emotionally, forcing them to confess whatever they’ve done, and make the viewer equally as uneasy. The set-up, piecemeal and minimalist, is rather striking ⏤ on paper, stitching together the entire film through various interviews, with angles defined and immovable, in a confined space is an artistic choice. Pointed, sterile, and somehow detached framework plays against the otherwise natural feel to the performances, which largely don’t always work, except for perhaps Brandon Larracuente’s turn as Zach, one of the dead who is only seen in “flashback” interviews.

Boasting an ensemble cast ⏤ rounded out with Mia Xitlali (as the other dead student, named Amelia), Lucas Adams (alt-right misogynist Major), Paris Berelc (Zach’s grieving girlfriend June), Annalisa Cochrane (drug-dealing resident rocker Raquel), Jess Gabor (sleep-deprived Carrie), Vanessa Marano (artsy-goth weirdo Noelle), Marcus Scribner (Zach’s whisky-swilling BFF named Garrett), and Jake Short (Carrie’s awkward, nerdy step-brother Sai) ⏤ the film does a whole lot of telling, rather than showing. The actors flex the words on the script as best they can ⏤ Adams gives a memorable showing that’ll really get your blood boiling, and Marano emerges as another standout ⏤ and you question what message it’s trying to convey (the gay subplot feels contrived, and a bit misguided).

The characters are, by design, a collection of stereotypes, only allotted shallow and lustful desires. Their singular purpose is to throw you off track to the identity of the killer (or killers) and if who is behind such a warped fantasy is someone else entirely. The first 30 minutes run long and tired; in fact, it could have been whittled down significantly to make way for the far more compelling and twisty second half.

Confessional has weight as far as camera work goes, enough bite to get under your skin with a few solid performances, but don’t expect an Academy Award-level exhibit. It’s simply popcorn-chomping fun for these very weary pandemic times, and nothing more.

Confessional hits Shudder this week.

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