Coincidentally, this is the second thriller I see in the span of a week that deals with the Catholic seal of confession as a main theme. The other one was the almighty Alfred Hitchcock's "I Confess", which is obviously a totally different kind of film (*), but nevertheless very fascinating to see how the concept of the supposedly holy and inviolable privacy of confession forms the inspiration for intense, grim and robust thrillers. And, mind you, then I haven't even mentioned Pete Walker's raunchy "The Confessional Murders" (a.k.a. "House of Mortal Sin") yet!
"Absolution" is a very compelling and original thriller, albeit admittedly one that too patiently takes its time to unfold. This shouldn't come too much as a surprise, since the scriptwriter is none other than Anthony Shaffer. He made himself immortal with screenplays like "Sleuth" and especially "The Wicker Man", and they are definitely also slow-brooding and unsettling stories with a heavy focus on character development. Richard Burton is truly great as the humorless Father Goddard; teacher/head priest in a strict Catholic boarding school for boys. When his prime pupil, of whom Goddard was certain he'd become an exemplary priest, suddenly develops a rebellious streak because he befriends a free-spirited drifter (Billy Connolly), things quickly escalate. The student, Benjamin, plays a vicious prank on Father Goddard and desecrates the holy confession, but things even get worse when people turn up murdered and fellow students missing. Also typical for an Anthony Shaffer screenplay is that nothing is what it seems, and the finale keeps some extreme violence and couple of surprise twists in store. I also would have preferred "Absolution" to kickstart a bit sooner, so that the first 40-45 minutes weren't so difficult to struggle through, but the second half is really good. Apart from Burton, there are great performances from the young actors Dominique Guard and David Bradley, and the climax is downright fantastic. Slightly predictable, maybe, but definitely satisfying for fans of grim horror and downbeat endings.
(*) I state there isn't a direct connection between Hitchcock's "I Confess" and "Absolution", but that isn't entirely true. One of the first screenplays the great Anthony Shaffer wrote was for "Frenzy"; - and that became the nastiest serial killer thriller to ever be directed by Hitchcock. Also, one year after "Absolution, director Anthony Page took on "The Lady Vanishes" as his next project, and that was a remake of a fantastic 1938 thriller; - directed by ... Alfred Hitchcock.
