Conclave

Grade: B

I have a feeling Conclave will go the distance and be heavily in the awards conversations these next few months. It has Oscar written all over it. The movie occupies that little subset of films where even though it’s rated PG, it’s really more of a mature, grownup one that would bore kids to tears. Dead Poets Society and The Hunt for Red October come to mind as other examples. I call it a thriller for old people. If characters finding secret documents stashed away gets you excited, you will be riveted.

I would wholeheartedly support nominations for the screenplay, and any acting nods. Ralph Fiennes is in the center of a tremendous ensemble, as Cardinal Lawrence. The Pope has just died, and the duty falls on him to assemble and sequester an army of Cardinals to vote on the successor. It’s already been called Twelve Angry Popes. One critic compares it to an Agatha Christie mystery – but rather than “whodunit,” it’s “who-done-it-gonna-be?” Conclave’s tone rarely rises to a shout. It’s quite quiet and talky. Any intensity is more implied than from anything that actually happens.

Ominous conversations take place. Lawrence learns that the last of them who spoke to the Holy Father before he passed might have been fired from his position. This is Cardinal Tremblay, in one of John Lithgow’s best performances. He plays his moments with sincerity, but is just slimy enough to make us think something might be up. He has been receiving many votes throughout this conclave. Stanley Tucci, another actor notorious for creating sarcastic, arrogant characters, is electrifying as an outspoken liberal Cardinal. He is also doing well in the running vote, but doesn’t want to be Pope. I imagine it’s like getting elected president. Winning is nice and fun, and you’re one of the most famous people in the world – but it’s a job, and all eyes are on you to fix everything.

I enjoyed a few set pieces and artistic choices. The sea of Cardinals, locked away in that large room, seated in their red robes, reminded me of the judges/court clerks in Anatomy of a Fall, or the Volturi organization from the Twilight books/movies. I liked the color guard-like precision and reverence with which they seal off the deceased Holy Father’s room. Isabella Rossellini is effective as a nun who doesn’t say much, but somehow says enough. She has a great line where she states that she’s supposed to be invisible, but cannot help but have eyes and ears.

Conclave stays in slow-burn territory, never really propelling to a level where I felt any significant stakes – but nevertheless, it’s a fairly absorbing cinematic experience. Interesting talking points are raised with each new discovery, revelation, and twist. The last one, in particular, is one that I didn’t even know was a thing. However, all these men seem to care about is who will win, who should win, and why. They are so wrapped up in papal politics that I wondered if they have forgotten about God – the reason they’re there.

Grade: B