Conclave

Released 2024. Director: Edward Berger

THE POPE HAS DIED AND THE COLLEGE OF CARDINALS convenes to find the next boss of the Catholic Church. When it comes to the Vatican, I dare say political intrigue is not the first thing that pops in your mind; but that’s exactly what you get in Conclave. Who knew that a movie about papal election could be so sinfully entertaining?

This arcane tradition, held behind locked doors with the cardinals sequestered from external interference, is the kind of secret practice that lends itself to mystery and speculation. As a work of fiction, Conclave (novel by Robert Harris and screenplay by Peter Straughan) is a crackling mix of pulp and plausibility, a test of faith and morals.

As the cardinals arrive from around the world, several names rise to the top of the list in the running for the throne of the Holy See. The movie is a linear procedural as each round of voting shuffles the ballots until white smoke rises from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel. During the intervals, secrets are uncovered, plots are unravelled and faith is challenged as the days supposedly spent on prayer and contemplation resemble an investigation into hypocrisy, corruption and deceit.

In the role of the unwitting detective is Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, played with a weary solemnity by the oft-underrated Ralph Fiennes. As Dean of the college, Lawrence dutifully carries out the unenviable undertaking of herding squabbling factions of pious men and maintaining the integrity of the process. Unbeknownst to most of his colleagues, Lawrence is contemplating leaving the Vatican before the death of the pope thrusts him into the centre of a power struggle.

Lawrence is a principled man who finds himself caught in a maelstrom of personal and ideological conflicts and must navigate his actions with fairness despite his own crisis of faith. Fiennes hides Lawrence’s frustrations behind a respectful demeanour, always choosing his words carefully and delivered in a calm and low tone, yet the burden of the duty and his own uncertainty show in his eyes. This is a confident lead role that steps back to make space for the crowded and loud supporting characters to have their moments and yet he’s never overshadowed. Fiennes takes Lawrence’s humility and turns it into a quiet, self-effacing role with great control.

The blocs in the conclave fall behind a handful of top candidates, including Cardinal Tremblay (John Lithgow), Cardinal Bellini (Stanley Tucci), Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto) and Cardinal Adeyami (Lucian Msamati). These are zealous men with different and even incompatible agendas. The politicking and lobbying among their supporters and detractors, both in the open and covertly, show that men who have sworn their lives to serve a higher purpose can be just as susceptible to temptations and self-importance like a normal person. The shade of deep red everywhere, from the drapes and carpet to the skull caps, cassocks and scarlet sashes, almost tricks your brain to smell blood in the air.

The plot thickens when rumours surface about Tremblay being sacked by the pope just hours before he died. An indiscretion in the past catches up with Adeyami, possibly orchestrated by one of his competitors. The conservative Tedesco makes no secret of his intention to reverse some of the church’s policies and Bellini, on the other hand, is too liberal and progressive for some. A new arrival at the conclave is Cardinal Benitez, who claims he was installed as Archbishop of Kabul by the pope in secret, meaning no one has ever heard of him. Is he an impostor?

Conclave is a plot-driven mystery with a roster of solid actors. Director Edward Berger, whose last movie was the Oscar-winning remake of All Quiet on the Western Front, really knows how to stage a series of secret balloting in a closed environment into an asthmatic fist-clencher. A large part of the credit must also go to Volker Bertelmann, whose use of string instruments and Cristal Baschet (composer Hans Zimmer used one for Interstellar) gives the movie its operatic momentum and amplifies the thriller element. Without his music, Conclave would be missing a vital energy, like watching Jaws in mute.

As the election process narrows with each scandalous revelation until we get to the naming of a new pope and after, the movie has one final surprise. The test of religious and personal integrity, every moment masterfully presented, pales in the face of the ultimate bombshell. Lawrence’s homily about embracing doubt as necessary for faith fits perfectly into the stunning revelation. A man who questions if he’s doing the right thing is now a keeper of a mystery by divine design. No need for a secret ballot to find which movie has the most unexpected and wickedly satisfying ending.

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