True Confessions is a 1981 American neo-noir crime drama film directed by Ulu Grosbard and starring Robert De Niro and Robert Duvall as the brothers Spellacy, a priest and police detective, respectively. Produced by Chartoff-Winkler Productions, it is adapted from the novel True Confessions by John Gregory Dunne, loosely based on the 1947 Black Dahlia murder case. Dunne wrote the screenplay with his wife, novelist Joan Didion. The film was released on September 25, 1981, receiving generally positive reviews from critics.