The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce (2008) - 3/4

There aren't many surprises in The Last Confession of Alexander Pearce. We begin knowing the outcome and, being based on a true story, we have some idea of what goes on. The pleasure is in seeing how the events came about--or at least how Pearce represents them as having come about.

A frame narrative is set up in which Irishman Alexander Pearce, a murderer and cannibal, is making his pre-execution confession to a priest in an English prison camp is Tasmania. We then get the account, in a few chunks, of how Pearce and his fellow prison camp escapees ended up eating each other until only Pearce was left. For a confession it's strangely lacking in confessing. He tends to represent himself as the one innocent one who ultimately had to kill to save himself from being killed. The one thing we don't get in confession is what we learn from the governor of the prison camp. He gives an account of Pearce being caught, returned to prison, escaping again, and eating his single fellow escapee when he had plenty of provisions.

What's strange about the film is that it takes pains to absolve Alexander Pearce of all his crimes. His killing and eating his companions is explained by the overwhelming drive of hunger and the kill-or-be-killed mentality. His killing his later fellow escapee is explained by his being driven mad from his experiences. Pearce, as far as the film is concerned, is not to blame for anything, but rather nature itself for making hunger and society itself for its inept penal systems are to blame.

The struggle through the Tasmanian wilderness is well-done survivalist storytelling and the story is a plausible reenactment, with good acting, of what might have happened. The sections with the priest and various colonists are alternately serious and satirical. Since they seem more satirical of society at the time than of now it's not really important to get the satire.

At a scant one-hour runtime, Last Confession never overstays its welcome. It does precisely what it sets out to do without much meandering. It presents a well-made account of Pearce's crimes and tries its best to exonerate him of the charge, "monster."

3/4