It's no accident the wide release of "Conclave" (Focus Features) a film about a papal election, was moved up from its Thanksgiving opening to almost two weeks before our national election. There are so many allegorical parallels, especially flawed human beings trying to change the world for the better, yet having to deal with their own egos.
The movie poses the question, "Can we still believe in this flawed institution, the church?" while knowing the machinations of its inner workings, just as media pundits are speculating whether America still believes in democracy.
When we look into the faces of cardinals in this film, are we seeing clerics or politicians? Perhaps the more pertinent observation is when we see the rivalries, we're also witnessing the political tensions underneath the surface, so this standout film becomes both a civic and faith allegory.
Rituals and rites
The Pope has died suddenly in his sleep and it's up to Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes), as dean of the College of Cardinals, to organize the conclave, which will select the successor to the throne of St. Peter. It's a 750-year-old ritual, making it Western civilization's oldest continuing election. It must be run with military precision but also in total secrecy. Lawrence wants nothing to do with this election, or so he claims, but must keep any personal aspirations private and remain neutral.
In fact, a short time before the pope died, Lawrence asked to leave Rome and retreat to a monastery in the hope of rediscovering his faith, but the pope denied his request ("Some are chosen to be shepherds and some are chosen to manage the farm."). His questions are less about God and more about faith in the institutional church. Faith and doubt always work in tandem with each other. Because he has spiritual integrity, Lawrence's conscience is forcing him to ensure the election proceeds morally, procedurely, and transparently.
There are several front-runners, all of whom are ambitious and manipulative. An American, Cardinal Bellini (Stanley Tucci), who as the Secretary of State, is the defacto leader of the progressive faction (more proof this is fiction, as most American cardinals are conservative). He's a canny diplomat, but also a cutthroat insider who knows how to maneuver the system to his advantage.
Traditions vs. reforms
His nemesis, also in contention, is Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto) of Venice, an archconservative Italian traditionalist, who wants to lead the Catholic Church back into the Dark ages with Latin masses. He's a reactionary, rejecting many of the Vatican II reforms, along with holding thinly-veiled racist views.
Another candidate is Cardinal Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati) of Nigeria, with regressive, anti-LGBTQ beliefs, who would become both the first Black man and African elected pope, but is hiding a past secret personal indiscretion. We also meet Cardinal Trembley (John Lithgow) of Montreal, the front runner, a centrist, who may or may not have been thrown out of the church by the Pope right before he died, because of financial malfeasance.
Finally, a wild card in the proceedings is introduced in the person of Cardinal Benitez (Carlos Diehz), a Mexican-born priest, running an underground church in Kabul, Afghanistan, whom the late pontiff secretly appointed to the cardinalate shortly before he died. Is he an interloper or a Christ figure?
There's a group of nuns, headed by no-nonsense formidable Sister Agnes (Isabella Rosellini), who despite hearing and seeing almost everything, must serve the basic needs (food, comfort) of the cardinals with cheerful acquiescence, while remaining quietly in the background.
Political intrigue
The movie plays like an elaborate chess game of political intrigue, with each contender having a spotlight moment, making their signature move on the board. The whole scenario feels like one of those Masterpiece Theater British locked-room murder mysteries, with the sleuth trying to deduce the killer, only here it's the best nominee for the job. Another analogy is 12 people sequestered in a claustrophobic jury room trying to come up with a verdict, cut off from any contact with the outside world.
Cardinal Lawrence is the sleuth and jury foreman, who must deal with crises, pettiness, scandals, gossip, whistle-blowers, shady backroom deals, Machiavellian machinations, and not least of all, a terrorist attack in Rome, even if he has to break some rules to fulfill his mission.
The film moves like a fast-paced intrigue suspense thriller in the same way director Edmund Berger handled his last triumph, the Oscar-winning movie, "All Quiet on the Western Front," but commandeered with precise attention to detail, craftsmanship, and a humanistic vision. It's a battle between spiritual idealism and realpolitik. It concludes with a final twist, which will leave audience's jaws dropping with shock. Oh, there's also an LGBTQ sub-plot which is essential, but we won't spoil it for you.
Authenticity and poetry
The stellar acting launches the film over the moon. Fiennes, with his sad, pleading eyes, slumped shoulders, dour disposition, and looks that suggest a multitude of emotions, in a possible career-best multi-layered performance (maybe a tie with his Nazi commandant in "Schindler's List") is sensational. It's a virtual certainty he will be nominated for a Best Actor Oscar. All the supporting ensemble players are impeccable, especially scene-stealing Tucci.
The pomp pageantry and austere visual sumptuousness make you believe you are at the Vatican itself. The overall tone is smart, provocative, polished, but darkly comic in spots. Overall, it's pro-Roman Catholic, provided reforms are made to make the church more inclusive. However, to its detriment "Conclave" barely acknowledges the clergy sexual abuse crisis.
The film could easily have slipped into a stodgy tutorial or classy soap opera, but screenwriter Peter Straughan (based on the highly recommended best-selling novel by Robert Harris) steers clear of pulp fiction, with believable penetrating dialogue conveying delicacy, authenticity, even poetry intermittently.
"Conclave" is an entertaining juicy potboiler, mesmerizing from start to finish, a religious "Succession." So don't walk, but run to your local cineplex, and prepare to be beguiled by clearly one of the year's most engrossing, scintillating cinematic achievements.
www.focusfeatures.com
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