"Conclave"
Piedmont Theatre
4186 Piedmont Ave, Oakland
November 29, 2024
This movie is a banger—one of the best films I’ve seen in a long while. It’s smart, tension-filled, and full of surprises.
The Pope has died and it’s time for the convening of one of those rarest of events: a papal conclave to determine who will succeed him and become the apostolic successor to Saint Peter. During this sede vacante—when the chair of the very highest-ranking prelate is vacant—eligible cardinals from around the world arrive at the Vatican to elect a new pontiff. The subsequent rumors, secrets, and conspirations make for an edge-of-your-seat tale of intrigue that held me rapt. The all-star cast and their acting is superb, as are the (mostly) accurate sets and costumes and gorgeous cinematography by Stéphane Fontaine. “Conclave” is thrilling on multiple levels.
Early in the film Thomas Lawrence, a British cardinal played by Ralph Fiennes, has been tasked with overseeing the conclave as Dean of the College of Cardinals, struggles to open a zip lock bag of toiletries which have been made available to him and all the cardinals sequestered at the Domus Sanctae Marthae. In his frustration at the responsibilities he must shoulder as Dean—responsibilities he is more than a little reluctant to bear—he rips the bag open so that all its contents spill out into the sink which he angrily retrieves, slapping down little plastic bottles of soap and shampoo and mouthwash on the counter. This is a scene where the otherwise quiet and reserved Cardinal Lawrence is portrayed by Fiennes to terrific effect. But Fiennes is sensational throughout the film.
All of the principal characters (and even those who aren’t) are acted splendidly. Stanley Tucci is marvelous as the American cardinal Aldo Bellini, a friend of Cardinal Lawrence’s and considered papabile, one who is regarded as a viable candidate for Pope. Also fantastic is John Lithgow as the moderate and presumably upright Canadian Cardinal Tremblay; and Sergio Castellitto as Italian Cardinal Tedesco (both also papabile), an arch conservative whose ambitions to the papacy, trenchant traditionalism, and fiery temper are qualities Lawrence and Bellini are decidedly opposed to in the next Pope. They, along with other cardinals in their camp, want to ensure he does not ascend to the papacy.
Another contender is the Nigerian Cardinal Joshua Adeyemi, played by Lucian Msamati, who has a hidden past that is revealed to the College during one of their shared meals. Isabella Rossellini, who plays Sister Agnes, the cardinals' head caretaker who was devoted to the late Pope, is aware of Adeyemi’s secret. She doesn’t get much screen time, but she’s crucial to the movie. The moments Rossellini is onscreen she shines with fierce authority.
No one who isn’t a member of the College of Cardinals has ever witnessed the ancient goings on of a papal conclave. But the meticulous research director Edward Berger did for the film (based on the 2016 novel by Robert Harris) is evident. The twists and turns in “Conclave” unfold slowly and gradually, all against the grand backdrop of the Vatican, particularly the Sistine Chapel where the cardinals are locked in and where Michelangelo’s “Last Judgment” looms above the casting of ballots. Stéphane Fontaine’s camerawork—particularly his long shots—are beautifully sumptuous. My only complaint about “Conclave” is the score by Volker Bertelmann. It’s overly heavy and fraught, even lugubrious. And I counted only one (one!) piece of liturgical music which is a terrible oversight.
There’s a major plot twist toward the end of the film which I won’t reveal. But trust me: it’s a shocker. It’s definitely far-fetched if not ridiculous, but oh so juicy. When the big reveal came the theater audience audibly gasped in unison. I could almost hear the sound of ultra conservative Catholics’ heads exploding. (Full disclosure: I’m a practicing Catholic, although toward the other end of the ideological spectrum; and this is fiction, after all.)
I can think of no film since “The Shoes of the Fisherman” that tackles the machinations of the papal conclave. Like the 1968 movie, “Conclave” is set within the politics and cultural mores of its era. Whereas “The Shoes of the Fisherman” had the Cold War as its setting, Edward Berger’s film is set firmly within our contemporary 21st century world. And it’s a thriller.
