22-nenme no kokuhaku: Watashi ga satsujinhan desu

The film is very wonderful and it mainly discusses the circumvention of the law and the exploitation of the loophole of the statute of limitations for charges, even if it is a murder.

It also discusses the thorny relationship between law, ethics, and the media, and how the latter affects the collective consciousness of people, when the press presented the killer as if he was a movie star who was fascinated by the general public and loved him instead of hating him & demand that he be tried for his crimes .

The film may be slow in some places, but it shines again. The hero, Fujiwara Tatsuya, was brilliant in the character of the killer. The direction and music were very good. Overall, the film is a unique experience.

This film tells the story of a series of five unsolved murders in Tokyo back in 1995. All of a sudden, a man claims to be the murderer in a shocking memoir.

It is disturbing to see a murderer publishing an autobiographical book on his murders. This alone makes this story very intriguing. However, things turn out differently as expected, because nothing is as it seems. The twists are unexpected and surprising. The story offers a lot of mystery and thrill throughout. I enjoyed watching it.

Why is it that in almost every Korean and Japanese film, there has to be ridiculous, long, drawn out scenes of ordinary people and wimpy cops crying alligator tears? And it doesn't matter if the cryers are young, old, male, female, weak or strong - everybody gets their chance to beat their chests raw till tears cascade like rain off their tepid cheeks. Without these annoying scenes, the movies would be powerful, well told, and recommended. Otherwise, just move along. The reveals are poor and ridiculous. Nothing to see here.

To call Memoirs of a Murderer a remake of the 2012 South Korean "Confession of Murder," simply doesn't do this motion picture justice. For clarification, Memoirs of a Murderer is the 2017 Japanese reimagining of the 2012 original. And boy, did they succeed.

After 22 years, in 2017, the statute of limitations of a serial killer has expired. The serial killer, now an author of his self-confessional book, in which he details his crimes, tries to make profit off of his 1995 crimes. I can't say more about the plot, it's best to watch this movie knowing as little as possible. But believe you me, this movie will effortlessly hold your attention.

This movie hits all the right notes. When I started watching this, I was hoping it wouldn't be a blatant shot-for-shot remake of the original, and my prayers were answered. What we have here is the same, but extended, thrilling story minus everything that genuinely ruined the original.

I remember watching the original movie thinking how insanely clever the entire plot was. And I still think that is the case, but the way they decided to execute it in the original movie's second half, really hurt the entire movie. I'm talking about the blasphemous Hollywood-esque car chase scene. Yes, it's just one scene, but if memory serves correctly, it was long drawn, and other reviewers criticized the movie for the very same thing.

I am happy to announce that the Japanese learned a lesson from this, and thus I would like to personally applaud the writers for doing some research prior to finalizing the script, and giving the story even more depth than it originally had. I even nearly cried.

To me, this is a masterpiece.

10/10 for the reimagining, 7.5/10 for the original

Based on a South Korean film called Memories Of Murder, the premise for this film is absolutely brilliant. As preposterous as it may sound at first, the events that follow a spellbinding opening act are hugely engrossing, with twists and turns every way you look. Directed brilliantly by Yû Irie, and featuring impressive performances across the board, Confession Of Murder is rapid-fire, gripping and hugely entertaining watch from beginning to end.

Let's start on what works best about the film: the story. The premise of a long-wanted criminal publicly confessing to a string of infamous murders by publishing a book about it had me immediately intrigued in this movie. The great thing about it is that the following events work in similar fashion to any old murder mystery, except for the fact that you know who the culprit is, allowing for more drama and unpredictability to come about as a result.

Not only does this film work well as an exciting crime mystery, there's also a lot of intriguing drama as well. Above all, the film's opening act looks heavily at the role of the media in crime investigations, and the effect that it can have on public opinion, as we see this self-confessed serial killer turned into a beloved celebrity within days by the media frenzy he has deliberately whipped up.

What's more is that the following two acts aren't so much of a police investigation into how the murders came about, but an in-depth research by one acclaimed journalist as his doubts about the new book bring him to investigate whether everything is really as it seems.

Throughout the story, the film takes countless twists and turns. Some are absolutely ridiculous and silly, and some are properly thrilling. Although I won't say this has the same level of grit and deep emotional shock, the extent to which the film twists so much is comparable to the likes of Se7en and Gone Girl, so it's likely a film that you'll enjoy if you're a fan of those two from David Fincher.

Of course, this isn't a particularly dark film, and it's a far more enjoyable watch than some of Fincher's hardest-hitting thrillers, but that doesn't mean it can't be gritty as well. As crazy as some of its twists are, Confession Of Murder is actually a pretty violent film, with some brutal murder sequences throughout that do bring a higher sense of drama and weight to the events unfolding, showing that there's more at stake than just a routine journalistic investigation.

As always, I won't spoil anything here for you, but make sure you go into this film in the knowledge that you really can't see what's coming next. Some of the twists are better-earned than others, but in general, this is a really exciting and unpredictable film throughout, making for a hugely entertaining watch from start to finish.

But it's not only the story that makes this film work so well, director Yû Irie also does a brilliant job at giving the film a thrilling pace and sense of urgency. Following an epic opening sequence, the film begins a brilliant snowball effect that lasts throughout the whole movie, picking up more and more tension and controversy in the story and pushing the characters into a near state of hysteria.

What's more is that Irie gives the film a brilliantly modern vibe, which fits perfectly with its look at the media's role in crime investigations. With a pulsating soundtrack that complements the sleek cinematography excellently, as well as the visual contrast between modern day and the events 22 years ago, with scenes set in 1995 given that contemporary grainy look, this is a fantastically modern and fast-paced movie, but it makes for even more excitement throughout.

Finally, the performances. Given that the film occasionally delves into somewhat melodramatic territory surrounding its more out-there twists and turns, I wasn't expecting the actors to hold up so well, but I have to say they really did. With excellent turns across the board, bringing a fantastic diversity of evil cunning, integrity, hard-line investigation and pure madness across all of the characters, particularly the lead three, the murderer, the cop and the journalist, there's even more to enjoy and delve into in this film.

Overall, I loved Confession Of Murder. Fast-moving, exciting and genuinely gripping throughout all of its twists and turns, it's a brilliantly entertaining film, and with an excellent and sleek directing style as well as some fantastic performances, you'll be on the edge of your seat before you know it.