Starting November 21, cinemas will be showing a fierce struggle for the Apostolic See in a political thriller with detective elements called «Conclave». The plot of the film is based on the novel of the same name by the English writer and journalist Robert Harris, which appeared on bookstore shelves in 2016. In the review below, we find out whether the cardinal-electors are hiding any secrets and tell you how interesting it is to watch the local conclave process in general.
Pluses:
the movie works as a rather exciting political thriller with elements of a detective story; the irony is appropriate; the cast is excellent and Rafe Fines' performance is outstanding; the technical side is top notch;
Minuses:
Some may find the story a bit boring; the ending is ambiguous, which spoils the overall impression;
«Conclave»
Genre political detective thriller
Director Edward Berger
Starring Rafe Fines, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Sergio Castellitto, Isabella Rossellini, Lucian Msamati, Jacek Koman, Carlos Dyets, Roni Kramer, Lori Lodi, Merab Ninidze, Brian F. O’Byrne
Premiere movie theaters
Year of release 2024
Website IMDb
The Pope has died. Now, under the leadership of the Dean of the College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church, the British Thomas Lawrence, the honorable priesthood must choose a successor. Among others, four candidates have the greatest chance of winning the election — the American progressive liberal Aldo Bellini, the Italian traditionalist with racist tendencies Tedesco, the Canadian conservative who is clearly hiding something, Joseph Tremblay, and, not to be taken as racist, a dark horse from Nigeria — Cardinal Joshua Adeyemi.
As the story unfolds, Lawrence will have to deal with the political intrigues and secrets that some candidates are hiding. The situation forces the dean to become a part of these games himself, as he has good reason to accuse certain colleagues of lying, which could affect the voting results. The unexpected appearance of an unknown Cardinal Vincent Benitez, who arrived here from Kabul, does not add to the tension of these Vatican passions. How will this fierce struggle for the Holy See end in the end?
The film adaptation of Robert Harris’s novel of the same name was directed by Edward Berger, whose previous project was critically acclaimed «All Quiet on the Western Front» (2022) based on the classic novel by Erich Maria Remarque. The director admitted that after working on such an epic and large-scale film, he was drawn to something opposite. That is why Harris’s chamber story, far from bloody battle scenes, interested him.
However, given the political passions that are constantly raging in the «Conclave», the local confrontation of ideologies, characters and ambitions will also turn into a kind of war, as one of the characters will directly announce. Only here, military uniforms are replaced by lush robes with red mozzettas, and instead of guns, secret plots and good old-fashioned cunning are a powerful argument, of course.
However, despite the gravity of the situation, Berger makes it clear, not without noticeable irony, that we are faced with a pretentious, luxuriously dressed crowd that is no different from «mere mortals» and is forced to coexist in rather absurd circumstances. In fact, it is about any election. Few characters seem to be those whom one would want to characterize as «unambiguously positive». Someone here, for example, will be reputationally buried by a dark secret from the past. And someone — is a racist who also smokes vapes. And this is not to mention the archaic patriarchy of the institution itself.
But the main thing is that the measured, unhurried, and dialog-driven narrative works well as a (political) thriller. While at first the monotonous chatter may seem boring, the more you immerse yourself in the story, the more interesting it becomes. Plus, there’s a fairly sane intrigue.
The rather fascinating content is supported by an expressive form. The pope’s residence itself, with its endless corridors, or the Sistine Chapel with its magnificent frescoes, complement the atmosphere and seem to be full-fledged participants in the events.
The naked eye can see the contrasting color filling of the frame (sometimes distinctly symmetrical), which adds even more tension to the already electrified air. The cinematographer Stefan Fontaine tends to use static shots, but where it makes sense, he resorts to traveling shots or even parallax (camera rotations around the characters, which, for example, are often used by Michael Bay). The composer Volker Bertelmann deliberately thickens the colors with a tense sound. There’s no need to mention the characters’ outstanding costumes.
The excellent cast also adds points to the treasury of positive impressions. Rafe Fiennes is simply incredible and literally rivets the audience’s attention to his character, making them feel his inner doubts and crisis of faith in the church. No wonder, «The Hollywood Reporter» in its review in the headline noted the film’s critics say that this is the best role in the 61-year-old English actor’s career. As always, John Lithgow and Stanley Tucci are on top of their game, albeit much more minor, but still noticeable. And the rather modest role of Isabella Rossellini in one of the key scenes makes it possible to understand the importance of her character, one of the few women who take place in this story.
What can spoil the taste of the film to some extent is the ambiguous ending, which is not so much disappointing as it is indifferent. The final revelation does not cause an emotional outburst and looks, let’s say, controversial.
From the point of view of a political thriller with a touch of detective work and an ironic view of events, it works. Of course, the topic of the pope’s election may not seem that interesting to some, and the story itself may seem boring. But it’s still worth giving this film a chance, even if your only experience of witnessing a new pope come to power is limited to bold humorous antics in a youth comedy «EuroTrip» (2004).
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