Blogcritics The critical lens on today's culture & entertainment
Directed by Edward Berger, Conclave is a bizarre little film that depicts the election of a new pope as a sort of socio-political thriller. At the outset of Conclave, the pope has died. The College of Cardinals must assemble to elect a new leader for the Catholic Church. Ralph Fiennes, in a strong performance of tightly controlled intensity, stars as Cardinal Lawrence. Lawrence must organize the proceedings, as votes are cast in an attempt to establish a successor.
Maybe this sort of thing resonates more with Catholics. Maybe it requires a certain active interest in the innermost workings of organized religion. However, interestingly, the various papal candidates are not painted in a particularly flattering light. They are portrayed as a bunch of bitchy working stiffs, chain-smoking cigarettes as they engage in their self-promotional campaigns. Each has a defining trait. Cardinal Bellini (Stanley Tucci), perhaps the most reasonable/relatable to viewers not of the Catholic faith, is a progressive liberal who wants equal rights for women and minorities.
Cardinal Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati) is extremely conservative. Cardinal Tremblay (John Lithgow) is sort of middle-of-the-road in his views but is embroiled in a controversial secret: The recently deceased previous pope had disavowed him for reasons that become clear late in the film. Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto) is an outright racist who seems to represent something along the lines of outmoded, old-school values.
The wild card is Cardinal Benitez (Carlos Diehz), who’d previously worked in Afghanistan and whom none of the other Cardinals are familiar with. As support slowly grows for this newcomer to the Vatican, the stress and infighting among the other candidates thickens. Director Berger (working from a screenplay by Peter Straughan, based on a novel of the same name by Robert Harris) builds the tension effectively throughout the first hour or so. But once the story gets mired in some “surprise twists,” it deflates. Without spoiling its secrets, Conclave ends up revealing itself as not much more than a shaggy dog story. But a great-looking and well-acted one, with beautiful cinematography by Stéphane Fontaine.
The Universal Studios Blu-ray edition of Conclave includes feature commentary with director Edward Berger. There’s also a making-of documentary feature called “Sequestered: Inside Conclave.” Without knowing at all what degree of accuracy the filmmakers embedded in their tale of electoral process, the lasting impression of Conclave is — why? Why tell this particular story? It’s head-scratchingly pointless.
