For a while, I was obsessed with suspense films and watched many Hitchcock films one after another. Compared with many masterpieces, this film is not well known-I haven't even heard of the name before. The suspense of the film is not heavy, and the plot is not complicated. It explores a very classical question: should the priest keep a secret for anyone's confession?
The following spoiler warning.
At the beginning of the story, the camera focused on a corpse and then turned to the murderer who hurriedly left. Following the camera, we saw the face of the murderer. He is the church steward Keller, who has fled from Germany, is financially strangled, and has a difficult life. He quickly confessed his murder to Father Logan. The process of seeking wealth and killing was lightly taken away, only emphasizing that it was for his wife to steal money, and then asked the priest to keep a secret for himself.
Logan has an old lover named Ruth. They lost contact during the war, and Ruth had no choice but to marry as a mistress, but he never forgot about Logan. After the war, Logan returns to his hometown to reunite with his long-lost lover. Ruth did not disclose to Logan the fact that she was married at this time. The two talked very happily, but unexpectedly heavy rain came, so they ran to a nearby house to hide from the rain. The homeowner is the deceased Villette. He sneered when Ruth had a private meeting with a strange man. Logan fought him to defend Ruth. The embarrassing reality finally surfaced, and the former lovers could only part ways. Logan joined the church and became a priest.
After the incident, the police began an investigation. According to witnesses, the murderer was dressed in a black robe and was supposed to be a priest. After some investigation, the suspicion fell on Logan. On the day of the incident, the inspector inadvertently caught a glimpse of Logan and Ruth talking at the door of the deceased’s house, planting seeds of suspicion in his heart. Later, the inspector asked if Logan had met with Villatte. Logan answered honestly. When he was asked by the inspector to describe the situation, he refused to disclose a word. Just to maintain the reputation of the heroine.
When Ruth learned that Logan had become a suspect, she eagerly sought out the detective. In order to restore Logan's innocence, she told her the old relationship with him, and Villette blackmailed her. According to her, she and Logan were with Logan on the night of the crime and didn't separate until very late. She thought that telling the secret would clear Logan's grievances. On the contrary, they were separated by half an hour before the deceased was killed. Her testimony not only failed to exonerate the priest, but also confirmed the priest's "criminal motive."
After several days of trial, the jury found Logan not guilty for lack of key evidence. The judge stated in court: This does not represent my opinion. The onlookers inside and outside the court did not think so. They truly believe that the priest is a vicious murderer and a morally badass. Logan was acquitted and immediately surrounded by a turbulent crowd after walking out of the courtroom. The murderer's wife couldn't bear to see him being used as a scapegoat to tell the truth. Then he was shot and killed by his crazy husband.
The murderer Keller is a strange thing. According to normal logic, the fewer people who know secrets, the better, not to mention murder secrets of this level. He doesn't, he wants to confess. No matter what, he didn’t want to retreat after he said it, what plan to go to another place to start again, or just surrender, don’t don’t, he just wanted to assume that nothing happened, not only that, but he also confidently asked the priest to keep it secret and say it out Is the priest wrong to the priest coward, excuse me? When he arrived in court, he lied and distorted the facts constantly, trying to transfer the crime to the priest completely. It's really a very negative character, and you can't see any human glory in him.
In the film, there is no positive portrayal of the priest's psychological activities, and he also cherishes words like gold. Anyway, no matter how hard he struggled, he never went to the police station to report the murderer. Why is this? This is very puzzling to me. I thought about it and listed a few reasons:
A. As a priest, Logan is very religious. Devout believers tend to place faith in a lofty position, higher than money, power, reputation, and even life. This is a sufficient condition.
B. After being tempered by the war, Logan has become bearish of life and death. The perseverance that is different from ordinary people allows him to overcome the panic in his heart, withstand the huge pressure, and choose to be silent. In contrast, people with weak-mindedness can't bear it at all. This is a necessary condition.
C. After all, the story happened in an era of unfashionable recording. Even if he informs others, will he believe it? This is a question mark.
D. A darker speculation-maybe the priest still loves Ruth deep down in his heart, and even on that night he really had a murderous intention on Villette, but he didn't act immediately. The murderer solved Ruth's troubles. He was relieved and felt a strong sense of guilt. So even if he became a suspect, he didn't go to the police station to report it. Maybe he took that as a punishment for himself and used it to offset it. Sins in the heart.
I respect the priest, and I am also impressed by his tenacity and noble silence. He chose to sacrifice himself to maintain the morality in his heart, which is also in line with the character of his character, but from the reality of the result, this choice is a relative. A typical example of the fast. Religious belief itself is not reasonable. Reason means impure belief and even frequent questioning, and various considerations and trade-offs based on reality. Religion and reason are indeed difficult to be compatible. Logan may not have considered that being kind to a murderer is cruel to a kind person. Keller's wife, and passers-by who died in vain, they didn't have to die.
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