Surviving Confession is a 2019 drama about a disgruntled priest, conflicted when his world turns upside down after an unlikely person enters his confessional.
There’s a clever and amusing twist to director Matthew Tibbenham‘s powerful little film Surviving Confession that sets a smart tone for the rest of the story. It’s a gamble for a few obvious reasons, one because it doesn’t seem the kind of story that would support such a thing and two, it further invites us into the mindset of a character we come preloaded with certain expectations, breaking them (almost) entirely. This is an uncommon movie experience with secrets you won’t see coming and a thump in the chest in its finale that not just earns its way, it strikes with jarring emotional consequence.
Father Morris (Clayton Nemrow) is a Catholic priest, not old, not young, sort of in the middle, experienced and honest, about to begin a three-hour turn at the confessional. What we learn though is that he does not look forward to what he feels will be another grind of rote, hollow admissions of those who won’t learn from their time before him. In fact, his first ‘sinner’ is just that, a man whom Morris knows is cheating on his wife (the guy’s mistress is also on his list) but won’t confess beyond a few minor slips during the week. And it goes on, with a blur of other parishioners who he sits through, waiting for it to end. But then in walks Amber (Jessica Lynn Parsons), a foul-mouthed, sexually-charged young woman who makes a bold statement and then simply won’t leave. But why? It’s the start of an odd evening, one that will change everything before it’s done.
Breaking the fourth wall right from the start, Father Morris looks us right in the eye and lets loose the inner thoughts of a dedicated man of the cloth with some surprising humanity, purposefully pulling back the curtain in hopes of dismantling the conventional portrayal of priests on film. Here’s a Father who plays Minecraft on his phone between confessions, speaks sarcastically to the camera, and reveals his hopes for something better, even as he celebrates his faith. It’s funnier than you might expect, mostly because Nemrow is almost unnaturally likable. You want to hang out him. But then things get serious. Then dark. Then heartbreaking.
This all seems like it would be unsustainable, the single room setting and small cast more fit for a small theater stage production but like a minor miracle, Tibbenham and his team do what seems the impossible, keeping this not only interesting, it’s downright compelling. That’s because of the terrific dynamic between the good Father and the mysterious Amber, who appears sent to test the man in every capacity possible, the girl fearless in her pursuit of some rather raw questions as Morris does his best to keep balance as he (and we) slowly piece together what’s really happening. Who is confessing to whom?
The real wonder in all this is how the story does all this and still has time to cut between Amber and Morris with the arrival of people coming to confess, parading a small array of deeply emotional moments that punctuate themes already spoken of – let alone a few plot points that curve back into importance. You might think it intrusive, or even a little manipulative, but it’s never that, from an elder priest questioning his long service in the name of his god, to a dying man looking for hope where there seems none, feeling it’s time to let go his many burdens (a horrifying twist shifting everything it feels set up to be). These are especially impactful sequences that Tibbenham handles with brutal honesty that drop the hammer in uncompromising fashion, forcing you to ask a few questions yourself.
Surviving Confession builds to a metamorphosis we sort of know is coming where the funny man we meet at the start evolves into something else entirely. What feels like a fun gimmick at the beginning soon becomes a tether, binding us to Father Morris in affecting ways. This is a film with religion at its core but is not a film about it, never preachy or using it as a crutch. This is the story of a man on a short journey in time but vast in space between where it starts and how it ends. It’s absolutely devastating. Highly recommended.