Ralph Fiennes delivers an Oscar-worthy performance in Conclave. Photo: Focus Features.
It has taken me a little bit to get around to watching the new Vatican-based drama, Conclave.
Admittedly, I didn’t love the idea of seeing a movie about rival cardinals all vying to become the Pope of the Catholic Church. It just wasn’t my vibe.
Fortunately for me, I had a friend who convinced me to come and I’m glad she did because it is one of the most tense movies I’ve seen in a while.
At first glance, the official synopsis seems simple enough.
“Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) is tasked with leading one of the world’s most secretive and ancient events, selecting a new Pope. During the conclave, he finds himself at the centre of a conspiracy that could shake the very foundation of the Catholic Church.”
What isn’t simple is the truly masterful way this film is put together.
There’s a clear four-act structure here, each building on the previous to deliver shock after shock. The first revolves around the death of the Pope and the mad scramble to get all the power players to Rome. The next three focus on the cardinals voting for who they wish to see become the next leader of the Catholic Church.
There are around six or seven votes throughout the movie, as there needs to be a two-thirds majority in favour of one candidate for them to be selected.
The brilliance and simplicity of this structure means that between every couple of voting sessions, new twists are unveiled about lead candidates, causing the conclave to scramble and look for another alternative.
On the surface, it is almost structured as a murder mystery but instead of ferreting out who murdered the victim, it’s discovering which cardinal has the least skeletons in the closet with Ralph Fiennes as the detective. It takes truly great writing to deliver this kind of structure.
The cast in this film is also top-notch. As mentioned, Ralph Fiennes is at his Oscar-nominated best and Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Lucian Msamati and Carlos Diehz all contribute first-class performances as our lead candidates.
The other thing worth mentioning is the film’s score.
Composer Volker Bertelmann absolutely crushes it. He has been on a hot streak in recent years, and Conclave might just be his best. It is a pulse-pounding feast for the ears that doesn’t let up throughout the entire runtime of the film. Each discovery Cardinal Lawrence makes is only amplified by the pure tension built up by the non-diegetic sounds that overlay the tightly written and cleverly paced script.
One thing that will undoubtedly upset some people about this film is its discussions about how progressive the Catholic Church should or shouldn’t be. Some cardinals in the film take certain stances on causes and, in some cases, the film picks one cause as more profound than others.
That’s not a knock on the film by any means, but those expecting their views to be vindicated by the stance this film takes will definitely be left angry.
I hope more of the general audience sees this film despite its religious setting because, in terms of production and acting, it truly deserves its Best Picture nominations at the Academy Awards this year.
Conclave is showing in selected cinemas across the country and is available for rent or purchase on most Video on Demand stores eg YouTube, Prime Video, and Apple TV.
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