Boobirt Stylish but barely mediocre overall

Teddie Blake The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Jemima It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

Darin One of the film's great tricks is that, for a time, you think it will go down a rabbit hole of unrealistic glorification.

thesar-2 This definitely reeks of OJ, but is so much more entertaining.Is there seriously a Statute of Limitations in Korea (or anywhere, that is) which allows people to confess their crimes after a certain amount of time with no repercussions? Okay, #1, real or not, you'll have to buy that to watch this movie and #2, I'm on the next flight there.Well, once again, Internet Channel and Horror-Wannabe-One-Stop Shudder led me to believe this was horror. Perhaps their purchase negotiator saw "Murder" in the title and snatched this up without reading a single synopsis. This is not horror. BUT, it is a REALLY good movie.It's more action, comedy and mystery. It's also one of the most original movies I've seen recently. Man those Asians, specifically, in this case, Koreans, know real storytelling. That Asian market of films is making me completely turn my back on my own country. While our country is focused on bucks from remakes, reboots, caving in and shameless knockoffs for even more money, Asians are making Art.I digress...Confession of Murder is a delightful revenge thriller with a ton of action, comedy and heart. It's brilliant with its twists and turns and red herrings - only these are for the plot and not characters. You truly think it's going one way, and a sharp left makes you humble. I clicked on this movie with the simple icon of the movie poster with two Korean men and the title. It was a part of my Shudder subscription, so as a fan of horror, I obliged. So, when I offer the synopsis, I want to be as simple as possible so you can enjoy this roller coaster of great storytelling as I did.The movie begins with an incredible chase scene in the rain from an obvious cop and a more obvious intelligent bad guy. No spoilers, as this is just the synopsis and is only the first 5 minutes of the two-hour movie, the bad guy gets away and years later "comes clean" with a memoir of all the murders he's committed in a nice, neat novel. He's allowed to due to a Statute of Limitations (SOL) law that states if not charged with a crime following a certain amount of time (15 years,) he/she cannot be charged with the crime. And now...let the mayhem begin with these "confessions of murder."Again, that's just the first 5 minutes or so. So, I didn't spoil much. Besides, maybe I get an SOL-discount since the movie came out 6 years ago and surely by now, I'm free to talk about 5 minutes screen time of a movie.The movie's two biggest flaws are: the runtime and suspension of disbelief. The grand majority of Asian films I stream have to be right at the 2-hour mark, close to it or way above it. They certainly do not know how to edit, or are too terribly arrogant with their art. In most cases, it definitely can be cut down some, but that might be just this ole American guy used to shorter movies.Oh, and that second point? Suspending our disbelief. Well, aside from the SOL issue, there's a few great action sequences that reminded me of many more movies, such as The Matrix Reloaded, Lethal Weapon 3, Captain America: Civil War / Black Panther, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Death Proof and The Transporter films...and is just as unrealistic. Sure they're fun to look at and get into the action, but to believe one moment, is to totally live in a fantasy world.Nevertheless, I had fun with the comedy that made me laugh out loud a few times, tear up with the heart of the victims, marvel at the action that was well choreographed and most of all, LOVE the script that kept evolving and keeping me glued to the edge of my seat. Well done. Well done.***Final thoughts: So, just for fun, I, right now, watched the trailer to see if gave anything away. Amazingly, it did not. It perfectly gave enough to the audience to see this movie and like I did above, provided the few seconds of the movie to evoke interest. Man...stop making me hate Hollywood so much in lieu of wonderful Asian cinema! You guys/gals do it so much better!

Claudio Carvalho In Korea, the serial-killer Lee Du-sok (Shi-hoo Park) has killed ten women and there is another one missing that the police department believes he is the responsible for her disappearance. After fifteen years, the statute of limitation expires on his last murder and Lee Du- sok publishes a book describing each murder in details. Detective Choi (Jae-yeong Jeong), who was in charge of the investigation of all the ten murders, chases Lee Du-sok and challenges him to tell where the eleventh victim is. Meanwhile, Han Ji-Soo (Young-Ae Kim), who is the mother of his last victim, seeks revenge with her family and friends. The owner of a sensationalist television network invites Lee Du-sok and Detective Choi for a debate live. Out of the blue, a man with the alias "J" calls the TV during the debate and tells that he is the real killer and Lee Du-sok is a fraud. Who should be the real killer?"Nae-ga sal-in-beom-i-da", a.k.a. "Confession of Murder", is an engaging South-Korean thriller with a great story. The performances are top-notch but the main twist is predictable and explains the behavior of Choi, despite surprising many viewers. There is also a criticism to the behavior of the media and public in general, worshipping a serial- killer because he is handsome. The only remark is the excessive and exaggerated action scenes; however they are part of the entertainment. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Confissão de Assassinato" ("Confession of Murder")

CinemaClown Featuring an intriguing premise, cleverly plotted for the most part & portraying a very unsettling side of society, Confession of Murder is another impressive outing from South Korean cinema that continues the Asian film industry's trend of delivering one solid revenge thriller after another without showing any signs of fatigue and even though it's not amongst the finest examples of its genre, it's a good one nonetheless.The story of Confession of Murder concerns a police detective who is haunted by his failure to capture a serial-killer 15 years ago when, after the expiration of statute of limitations, the killer publishes an autobiography describing each one of his murders in gruesome detail through which he claims of repentance for his crimes. But his authenticity is soon questioned when another person claiming to be the real killer turns up.Directed by Jung Byung-gil, this is his mainstream feature film debut & even though the story suffers from few scenes that are far too outstretched or predictable, it's a solid start to his mainstream career. Screenplay is another fine aspect as the twists are nicely timed & events unfold in a steady manner, camera-work shows a dynamic range from frequently edited cuts to lingering shots & music also has a nice vibe to it.The performances are good with both lead actors constantly challenging each other but the one problem I have is with some sequences that seem unnecessarily exaggerated, not to mention the CGI elements which look mind-numbingly horrible. Yet, the best part is the society it portrays where the supposed serial killer becomes a media sensation due to his good looks & gets his own fan following despite the unforgivable acts he committed.On an overall scale, Confession of Murder might be predictable despite its twists n turns and isn't further helped by its non-linear narration which doesn't contributing much to the cinematic experience anyway but it's another fine addition to the long list of dark thrillers South Korea has been churning out since the dawn of the new century. It is no masterpiece, not even close to one, but the final ride still feels more satisfying than a mere disappointment.

fluffset First 10 minutes.I feel shocked because this movie started spontaneously with action, which it is too cool and make all audiences mute while their eyes watching all the movement carefully. One thing popped up in my mind, ''This is what I want, not some talking mouth before action but this is it!''.In the middle of nowhere.After that, the momentum down, really really down just after the moment of the confession. All cliché from everyday korean movie come, flamboyant power rangers action, illogically scene such as empty traffic in the middle of the day of the busily korean city, unnecessary temper, unfunny comedy. At this part, all things move too fast as rushing, if they slow it down it will be better and not to ruin the audience's mood. But must be careful because many hint showed.Last 40 minutes.When my mood keep going down, it grab its momentum back with a really really good twist that's unthinkable and unpredictable. The momentum rise back and make all the audience cannot leave their seat, ever to yawn. If I'm the president of south Korea I will just change the law and catch the murderer if he just confess like that. But I'm not korean so I don't know their law. However, in this part all my curiosity answered and prevent me from going to give this movie such a low rate. This is a not a good movie but enjoyable and can satisfy all the action-packed-thriller lover. Try this!