Assessment of the “Conclave”: electing a new pope becomes somewhat ungodly

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Assessment of the “Conclave”: electing a new pope becomes somewhat ungodly

Soon, voters will have a choice: do you choose the candidate you believe in? Or do you choose to keep a right-wing strongman out of power? Ideally, these goals and desires will overlap, and while one version of this question may already come to mind, the specific electorate I’m referring to happens to be a group of cardinals, sequestered in the Vatican in that of Edouard Berger “Conclave.”

Adapted by Peter Straughan from Robert Harris’ 2016 novel, the beautifully rendered and meticulously performed “Conclave” encompasses these universal struggles in the rigorously regimented ritual of electing a new pope. Filled with behind-the-scenes shenanigans among conniving cardinals, as well as a Pakula-like penchant for staircase whisper campaigns among power brokers, “Conclave” is less a piece of probing philosophy than a scandalously tortuous papal potboiler .

Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with leading the conclave after the Pope’s death – a task he is reluctant to undertake. The white smoke can only rise when one of the cardinals secures a majority of 72 votes, and guiding this band of power-hungry, feuding traitors to that number is going to require a Herculean feat of delicate diplomacy, perhaps even an act of God. or two.

This would probably be an easier task for a less principled cardinal. Alas, the burden of electing the right-wing pope weighs heavy on Lawrence, and the responsibility is complicated by the fact that unsavory rumors and controversies swirl around three of the most ambitious favorites: the meddling of Cardinal Tremblay (John Lithgow), the overly suave Cardinal Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati) and the ultra-traditional, constantly vaping Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto). Lawrence, however, would like to lend his support to the quietly progressive Cardinal Bellini (Stanley Tucci), who shy away from this possibility.

The conclave is also disrupted by an unexpected guest: a cardinal secretly appointed by the pope. The archbishop of Kabul, a mysterious Cardinal Benitez (Carlos Diehz), arrives unexpectedly, his presence sending a ripple through the dynamic, a silent bomb waiting to explode as he becomes a surprising dark horse candidate for the job .

Lawrence himself openly refused this role, citing a crisis of faith, but some accused him of harboring such ambitions. Fiennes, who is so restrained in his performance that it almost pains him, manages to let the shadow of hope cross his carefully composed face. Maybe if the votes go his way, this could actually happen. This subtle subplot, so beautifully performed by Fiennes, is the real gem at the center of the film.

Closed politics devolves into lunchroom antics and social warfare akin to a high school movie, but this whirlwind of interpersonal drama is grounded in the pomp and circumstance of centuries-old rituals: the clothes, the ballots and the hierarchy. However, director Berger (“All is calm on the Western Front”) takes a modern approach to the film’s style. Decorator Suzy Davies offers a set of dramatic reds, whites and blacks – hard, shiny surfaces with a certain coldness. Cinematographer Stéphane Fontaine uses the unique scale and scope of the Vatican to create breathtaking compositions and slow zooms that add to the pressure of the claustrophobic atmosphere. The sharp strings of composer Volker Bertelmann’s score convey the issues of the situation well.

But the richness of the cinematography, including the powerful acting, obscures the fact that the story itself is a fairly thin and silly mystery with twists and turns that devalue the intellectual dilemma at the center of the narrative. The script wants to address the question of whether the Church can progress and adapt to the modern world, but all the subtext is text. “Conclave” doesn’t invite the audience to dig deeper; it bluntly provides all the questions and answers, then distracts us with a variety of surprising twists and turns that, strangely, are all presented with the same degree of scandal, despite not existing on the same moral scale.

“Conclave” is a film that seems deeper than it actually is. In reality, it’s more of a middle-of-the-road thriller that flirts with the vulgar as it presents the inner workings of the top-secret Vatican. Although the storyline’s themes can be extrapolated to broader sociopolitical issues, it fails to bring new ideas beyond the basic notion that cardinals are just like us.

Katie Walsh is a film critic for the Tribune News Service.

‘Conclave’

Note : PG, for thematic material and smoking

Operating time: 2 hours

Playing: Broadcast on Friday October 25

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