Best movies like The Confession
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
After his young son dies from the negligience of medical professionals at a hospital, Harry Fertig (Kinglsey) takes matters into his own hands and kills the negligent doctors responsible. Slick lawyer Roy Bleakie (Baldwin), looking only to win a case and not caring of the matters involved, is assigned Fertig's case. Shocked to hear that his client wants to plead guilty, the case causes Bleakie to question his own morals by defending an honorable man.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 114 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, psychological, captivating, suspense, inspirational, independent film
Best tv shows and movies like The Confession (1999):
Similar in 75%
Return to Sender (2004)
Plot Summary:
While fighting for a woman who sits on death row, a lawyer happens upon new information which brings into question the motives of a man associated with her client.
IMDB Rating: 6.3
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: Denmark, USA, UK
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: psychological, suspenseful, sincere, suspense, serious, realistic
Similar in 84%
Loved (1997)
Plot Summary:
After a husband is accused of droving his third wife to suicide, his first wife Hedda, a troubled woman who can't hate or hurt others even if they had wronged her, is subpoenaed to testify on his abusive behavior during their marriage.
IMDB Rating: 4.6
IMDB Votes: 728
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 109 min
Plot tags: independent film, psychological, sincere, thought provoking, bleak, serious, emotional, realistic, disturbing, contemplative
Similar in 83%
The Trial (1993)
Plot Summary:
Joseph K. awakes one morning, to find two strange men in his room, telling him he has been arrested. Joseph is not told what he is charged with, and despite being "arrested," is allowed to remain free and go to work. But despite the strange nature of his arrest, Joseph soon learns that his trial, however odd, is very real, and tries desperately to spare himself from the court's judgement.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: UK
Duration: 120 min
Plot tags: tense, atmospheric, bleak, suspenseful, serious, surreal, psychological, realistic, psychotronic, independent film
Similar in 89%
The Divide (2014)
Plot Summary:
The Divide is a 2014 legal drama that aired on WE tv. The first season consisted of eight hour-long episodes. It premiered on July 16, 2014. On October 30, 2014, the series was canceled by WE-tv.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: tense, realistic, serious, captivating, political, detective, contemplative
Similar in 80%
Confession (2005)
Plot Summary:
In a small Catholic boarding school an unspeakable act has been committed. When High School student, Luther Scott, confesses to Father Michael Kelly, Kelly is bound silent to the particulars of a grisly murder. Now, framed guilty by the desperate teen, Kelly must decide to keep his silence or throw away everything the priesthood holds sacred.
IMDB Rating: 5.5
IMDB Votes: 679
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 90 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, independent film, detective
Similar in 87%
Blind Faith (1998)
Plot Summary:
in 1957 an African-American criminal lawyer (Courtney B. Vance) defends his nephew, who faces the death penalty for murdering a white boy. Charles S. Dutton, Kadeem Hardison, Garland Whitt and Lonette McKee costar in this drama of racial and social tensions.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 662
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 122 min
Plot tags: thought provoking, independent film, serious, realistic
Similar in 76%
Nuts (1987)
Plot Summary:
A high-class call girl kills a customer in self-defense. To avoid scandal, her parents try to have her declared mentally incompetent. Not helping matters is that she is very distrustful of everybody, including her court-appointed attorney, and is very disruptive during her court hearings.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 116 min
Plot tags: psychological, hilarious, psychological thriller, tense, rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing, crying
Similar in 86%
The Trials of Cate McCall (2013)
Plot Summary:
In order to be reinstated to the bar and recover custody of her daughter, a hotshot lawyer, now in recovery and on probation, must take on the appeal of a woman wrongfully convicted of murder.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 7000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: tense, serious, suspenseful, rough, captivating, realistic, social, detective, twisted
Similar in 81%
Perfect Witness (1989)
Plot Summary:
A witness to a mob killing has second thoughts about testifying when he realizes his family might become a target.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 479
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 103 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, disturbing
Similar in 77%
Mistrial (1996)
Plot Summary:
When a cop-killer goes free, a detective's search for personal justice veers dangerously out of control. Declaring a mistrial, he takes the accused, the judge and the jury hostage...and begins a trial of his own.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 939
Genere: Action, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: psychological, realistic, suspenseful, rough, serious, psychological thriller, psycho film
Similar in 76%
Night of the Wilding (1990)
Plot Summary:
Joseph Gainer is a high priced attorney, notorious for getting guilty criminals off the hook. But Gainer is forced to take another look at the price you pay for defending the guilty when he takes on a case of three young men accused of a heinous crime. And when he discovers that his ex-wife is the prosecuting attorney, Gainer finds he suddenly has more on the line than he ever imagined.
IMDB Rating: 4.7
IMDB Votes: 103
Genere: Crime, Thriller, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 85 min
Plot tags: independent film, rough, serious, realistic, disturbing
Similar in 81%
Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker (1994)
Plot Summary:
The story of Johnson Whittaker, one of the first African-American cadets admitted to West Point. Tied down and beaten by his fellow cadets.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 572
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: serious, realistic
Similar in 88%
Indictment: The McMartin Trial (1995)
Plot Summary:
The McMartin family's lives are turned upside down when they are accused of serious child molestation. The family run a school for infants. An unqualified child cruelty "expert" videotapes the children describing outrageous stories of abuse. One of the most expensive and long running trails in US legal history, exposes the lack of evidence and unprofessional attitudes of the finger pointers which kept one of the accused in jail for over 5 years without bail.
IMDB Rating: 7.6
IMDB Votes: 4000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 131 min
Plot tags: depressing, political, clever, bleak, serious, realistic, disturbing, talky
Similar in 86%
Reversible Errors (2004)
Plot Summary:
A corporate lawyer's interest in a decade-old murder case is piqued by a new confession that could clear the convicted killer, who sits on death row.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 803
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 173 min
Plot tags: psychological, tense, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful, suspense, disturbing, intense
Similar in 77%
Whitewash: The Clarence Brandley Story (2002)
Plot Summary:
Based on the true story of Clarence Brandley, a black man wrongly accused in 1980 of the murder of a 16-year-old white high school girl named Cheryl Ferguson. Brandley worked at Conroe High School, where Ferguson was visiting as a member of the Belleville High School volleyball team. Three days after her body was discovered, Brandley was arrested as the murderer. Jew Don Boney, a popular activist and Houston city council member, leads the fight to uncover the truth about the Ferguson murder. Mike DeGeurin, a Texas attorney, is brought in to act as the head defense attorney for Brandley, and is joined by a former minister, Jim McCloskey. The lawyers discover that not only is there a complete lack of evidence against Brandley, but the District Attorney, James Keeshan, has been strategizing with the presiding judge. After nine years in prison, three trials and a stay of execution that saved Brandley's life, justice finally prevails as Brandley is granted his freedom.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 165
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: disturbing, emotional, realistic, suspenseful, tense, serious
Similar in 84%
A Show of Force (1990)
Plot Summary:
In this thriller, television reporter Kate Ryan de Meléndez investigates the death of two radical Puerto Rican activists, whom she begins to believe may have been framed and murdered by undercover American agents.
IMDB Rating: 5.3
IMDB Votes: 842
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 95 min
Plot tags: rough, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 83%
Citizen Verdict (2003)
Plot Summary:
Marty Rockman, the notorious producer of the hit reality-TV show "So Sue Me", has a brand new concept: "Citizen Verdict". Each week a real criminal case will be tried before the American people, but this time they're also the jury. If the defendant is voted guilty in a death penalty case, Rockman will televise the execution. When an escalation in violent crime and terrorism hits the state of Florida, Governor Tyler, desperate to be seen as a tough-on-crime Republican leader in the upcoming Presidential race, decides to give Rockman his chance and "Citizen Verdict" goes into production in Tampa. Selected by phone-in vote, the show's first contestant is Ricky Carr -- a man accused of the rape and murder of popular celebrity-chef Dolly Hamilton. The case is a surefire ratings winner. But when an investigation begins, it becomes apparent that Ricky may be innocent of murder.
IMDB Rating: 4.3
IMDB Votes: 491
Genere: Drama
Country: UK, Germany
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: serious, disturbing, thought provoking, bleak, realistic, clever, cynical, biting, suspense
Similar in 76%
One Angry Juror (2010)
Plot Summary:
Based on the true story of Sarah Walsh, a tough New Orleans attorney who serves on a murder trial jury and does some investigating of her own.
IMDB Rating: 5.9
IMDB Votes: 279
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: sincere, serious, captivating, realistic, tense, independent film
Similar in 88%
Jagged Edge (1985)
Plot Summary:
San Francisco heiress Page Forrester is brutally murdered in her remote beach house. Her husband Jack is devastated by the crime but soon finds himself accused of her murder. He hires lawyer Teddy Barnes to defend him, despite the fact she hasn't handled a criminal case for many years. There's a certain chemistry between them and Teddy soon finds herself defending the man she loves.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 108 min
Plot tags: neo noir, suspenseful, tense, suspense, psychological thriller, psychological, serious, psychosexual thriller, dark, twisted
Similar in 75%
The Chamber (1996)
Plot Summary:
Having survived the hatred and bigotry that was his Klansman grandfather's only legacy, young attorney Adam Hall seeks at the last minute to appeal the old man's death sentence for the murder of two small Jewish boys 30 years before. Only four weeks before Sam Cayhall is to be executed, Adam meets his grandfather for the first time in the Mississippi prison which has held him since the crime. The meeting is predictably tense when the educated, young Mr. "Hall" confronts his venom-spewing elder, Mr. "Cayhall," about the murders. The next day, headlines run proclaiming Adam the grandson who has come to the state to save his grandfather, the infamous Ku Klux Klan bomber. While the old man's life lies in the balance, Adam's motivation in fighting this battle becomes clear as the story unfolds. Not only does he fight for his grandfather, but perhaps for himself as well. He has come to heal the wounds of his own father's suicide.
IMDB Rating: 6.0
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: emotional, suspense, thought provoking, realistic, rough, serious, suspenseful, talky, anamorphic, contemplative
Similar in 79%
Innocent (2011)
Plot Summary:
Bill Pullman (Independence Day, Torchwood) stars as Rusty Sabich, a judge charged with the murder of his wife, a situation that comes 20 years after he was cleared in the death of his mistress. During this latest trial, a secret affair from Rusty's recent past threatens to hamper his defense and fracture his relationship with his son. Oscar® winner Marcia Gay Harden (Pollack, Damages) plays Rusty's wife, while Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2, Law & Order: LA) is his friend and defense attorney. Scott Turow's Innocent is a sequel to Turow's bestseller Presumed Innocent. The movie is written and directed by Mike Robe.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 727
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Duration: 89 min
Plot tags: tense, captivating, psychological, disturbing, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 88%
Rampage (1987)
Plot Summary:
Rampage delves into the subject of legal insanity, so often the default defense in modern-time gruesome crime trials. Alex McArthur plays an outwardly normal guy who goes on incredible killing and mutilating sprees until (and even after, when he escapes for a short time) he's captured. When he comes to trial, the liberal DA (Michael Biehn) is torn between his own leftist leanings and the reality of the heinous crimes for which the accused is being tried. He must argue for the death penalty.
IMDB Rating: 6.2
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 97 min
Plot tags: christmas horror, cult classic, action thriller, independent film, psychological, rough, bleak, serious, realistic, suspenseful
Similar in 82%
The Rainmaker (1997)
Plot Summary:
When Rudy Baylor, a young attorney with no clients, goes to work for a seedy ambulance chaser, he wants to help the parents of a terminally ill boy in their suit against an insurance company. But to take on corporate America, Rudy and a scrappy paralegal must open their own law firm.
IMDB Rating: 7.2
IMDB Votes: 82000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA, Germany
Duration: 135 min
Plot tags: suspense, exciting, intense, tense, thought provoking, clever, serious, realistic, scary, inspirational
Similar in 84%
Night Falls on Manhattan (1996)
Plot Summary:
A newly elected District attorney finds himself in the middle of a police corruption investigation that may involve his father and his partner.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 113 min
Plot tags: suspense, talky, serious, realistic, neo noir, suspense thriller, tense, bleak, suspenseful, detective
Similar in 77%
Class Action (1991)
Plot Summary:
Liberal activist lawyer Jedediah alienated daughter Maggie years ago when she discovered his many affairs. Now a conservative corporate lawyer, Maggie agrees to go up against her father in court. To gain promotion, she must defend an auto manufacturer against charges that their explosion-prone station wagons are unsafe. As her mother begs for peace, Maggie takes on her dad in a trial that turns increasingly personal and nasty.
IMDB Rating: 6.4
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 110 min
Plot tags: suspense, thought provoking, touching, serious, realistic, talky, emotional, clever, contemplative, exciting
Similar in 85%
Changing Lanes (2002)
Plot Summary:
A rush-hour fender-bender on New York City's crowded FDR Drive, under most circumstances, wouldn't set off a chain reaction that could decimate two people's lives. But on this day, at this time, a minor collision will turn two complete strangers into vicious adversaries. Their means of destroying each other might be different, but their goals, ultimately, will be the same: Each will systematically try to dismantle the other's life in a reckless effort to reclaim something he has lost.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 74000
Genere: Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 98 min
Plot tags: psychological, harsh, realistic, psychological thriller, tense, clever, suspense, intense, bleak, serious
Similar in 89%
Trial by Jury (1994)
Plot Summary:
Valerie is a juror in the trail of a mob boss. When her young son's life is threatened, she has no option other than to see that justice isn't done.
IMDB Rating: 5.4
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 107 min
Plot tags: tense, suspenseful, rough, serious, realistic, neo noir, erotic, psychological, romantic, sexy
Similar in 83%
The Lincoln Lawyer (2011)
Plot Summary:
A lawyer conducts business from the back of his Lincoln town car while representing a high-profile client in Beverly Hills.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 251000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 118 min
Plot tags: clever, serious, captivating, suspense, psychological, tense, suspenseful, enigmatic, twisted, entertaining
Similar in 77%
...and justice for all. (1979)
Plot Summary:
An ethical Baltimore defense lawyer disgusted with rampant legal corruption is asked to defend a judge he despises in a rape trial. But if he doesn't do it, the judge will have him disbarred.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Duration: 119 min
Plot tags: suspense, realistic, disturbing, clever, offbeat, humorous, witty, cynical, captivating, inspirational
Similar in 83%
The Verdict (1982)
Plot Summary:
Frank Galvin is a down-on-his luck lawyer, reduced to drinking and ambulance chasing. Former associate Mickey Morrissey reminds him of his obligations in a medical malpractice suit that he himself served to Galvin on a silver platter: all parties willing to settle out of court. Blundering his way through the preliminaries, he suddenly realizes that perhaps after all the case should go to court; to punish the guilty, to get a decent settlement for his clients, and to restore his standing as a lawyer.
IMDB Rating: 7.7
IMDB Votes: 45000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 129 min
Plot tags: suspense, tense, atmospheric, intense, sincere, thought provoking, touching, serious, suspenseful, clever