The Pope and the Conclave: A Review of Two Films
Two recent movies, The Two Popes, a dramatized backstory and conversation between Pope Benedict with the eventual Pope Francis, and Conclave, a fictionalized but accurate portrayal of the Pope selection process, offer a modern expose on the changing tides of the Catholic church in the 21st century.
Each film has a unique style, whether biographical, philosophical, or engaged as a political thriller, and the narratives transposed on screen offer a glance to the opaque view of the Vatican. In view of the recent death of Pope Francis and the ensuing procedure to elect Pope Leo the 14th, I will detail my thoughts and experiences watching both movies, enshrining the personally significant meanings that I felt throughout.
I first saw Conclave in the theatre last October on its opening weekend. The thrilling movie trailer that was released a couple months prior caused anticipatory excitement. The star-studded cast, Ralph Fiennes, John Lithgow, and Stanley Tucci, were superb in their roles as bishops, vying to be the next Pope. The director, Edward Berger, known for his 2023 Oscar winning film, All Quiet on the Western Front, and the screenwriter, Peter Straughan, orchestrated a powerfully thrilling tale set in the pristine depiction of the opaque halls of the Vatican. The composer, Volker Bertelmann, created wonderful musical tension as the stakes mounted in the pope selection process.
It was a phenomenal film, well deserved of its recent Academy Award for Best Picture. But the personal circumstances on opening weekend were profound. It debuted in theatres on October 25, 2024, the same night that my grandfather, Charles Palladino Sr., passed away. I received a call from my dad in the morning, where he told me the devastating but, unfortunately, expected news. His health had been declining rapidly over the past couple months as he reached the age of ninety. We saw the movie on Sunday evening after my dad divulged the date of my grandfather’s funeral, which was set for November 5th.
That date was significant, as I have had a tradition of being an election worker since 2020. I was unsure if I should abstain from my election duties to attend the funeral or not, especially given the very fraught and contentious election. I, ultimately, opted to attend the funeral, but my decision was partly due to this movie as well as the significance that my grandfather has had on my life.
Prior to the beginning of the deliberations with the pope selection process, the Dean of Cardinals, Thomas Lawrence played by Ralph Fiennes, recited his homily, offering an important message. He had been hearing the murmurs and seen the division of factions among the Cardinals as they arrived at the Vatican. He preached about the sin of certainty, stating, “Certainty is the great enemy of unity. Certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance. Even Christ was not certain at the end,” where he alluded to a moment near Jesus’ death.
Closing his homily, he states, “Let us pray that God will grant us a pope who doubts and let him grant us a pope who sins; asking for forgiveness and who carries on.” This line foreshadows a scene involving a rising Cardinal, Joshua Adeyemi of Nigeria played by
Lucian Msamati, whom has a crisis of past misconduct that is revealed. The concept of doubt and certainty is well known in church teachings, as the story of Jesus and other tales in the Bible preach the power of faith through uncertainty.
It is quite interesting that the Dean of Cardinals is Thomas, as it alludes to the Apostle, known as “Doubting Thomas”, who had disbelief that Jesus had risen again after his death. Known as one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, he later founded the “Church of the East” as well as many early Catholic churches in the first century located around Asia and India. Relating to this, Cardinal Thomas Lawrence has a conversation with Cardinal Vincent Benitez, a Mexican archbishop working in Afghanistan, about his crisis of faith, difficulties with prayer, and desire to resign from the church before the late Pope’s untimely death.
The idea of a bishop with a desire to resign is not unheard of as the film, The Two Popes, captures from recent history. In the movie, Jorge Mario Bergoglio played by Jonathon Pryce, prior to becoming Pope Francis, submitted a resignation letter as archbishop. He never receives a reply and decides to travel to Rome. When he arrives, he is summoned to the Vatican by Pope Benedict, played by Anthony Hopkins, who actually resigns from Pope in 2013, for a lengthy discussion spanning religious philosophy, political strife, possible church changes, and their lives.
They spend a few days at the Palace of Castel Gandolfo, the summer residence of the Pope. I had not heard of this gorgeous place, and I learned that the filmmakers were allowed to showcase the exterior views. Director Fernando Meirelles created a lovely letter to the life of the man that would later become Pope Francis, weaving his backstory in-between the discussion between the two men. During the time at the beginning of Pope Francis’ reign, I had been dealing with a fallout from my desire to be a Catholic, so I was unfamiliar with his story.
Growing up, my life was filled with Catholicism. I was baptized as a baby, introduced to the Eucharist as a child, confirmed as a teenager, spent the first eight years of schooling at a private Catholic church, called Saint Charles, and visited small towns in Kentucky for week-long religious retreats with Habitat for Humanity. While the nature of Catholicism was a reoccurring theme in my early life, there were many moments of doubt and hopelessness throughout those experiences.
Mixed throughout was the incessantly relentless bullies in my school life. While bullies were considered common, it severely chipped away at my positive outlook on life; creating a dark cloud that stayed with me for many years. It was hard to focus on the good that the pastors preached from the pulpit when my fellow schoolmates were so cruel. And as I progressed into adulthood with religious doubt, I slowly moved away from the teachings of the Bible and the familiarity of the church proceedings.
But learning about the life of Jorge Mario Bergoglio had illuminated a side of forgotten history. His early pastoral life in Argentina was during a time in the late 1970’s of a military dictatorship, led by President Jorge Rafael Videla. In the film, Jorge Bergoglio recounts a life of regrets and lack of courage. But it also portrays the lifelong desire to help, however small, and a post-war ministry leading uplifting communities. Courage in the face of a seemingly unstoppable force does not take grand gestures; it takes small acts of defiance and kindness.
Back to the film Conclave, Thomas’ discussion with Cardinal Aldo Bellini, played by Stanley Tucci, illuminated the political divides within the college of cardinals. Bellini fervently argued, “If we liberals are not united, [Cardinal Goffredo] Tedesco will become Pope. If Tedesco becomes Pope, he will undo 60 years of progress.” Cardinal Goffredo Tedesco, played by Sergio Castellitto, is an Italian traditionalist who distains the modern changes to the church’s teachings.
The Catholic Church is not immune to the ebb and flow of change. It has survived 2,000 years through many wars, scandals, and political strife, yet it remains an institution for millions worldwide. The Oxford definition of the word “catholic” states that it, “includes a wide variety of things; all-embracing”. Over the years, that word has been tainted by human ambition, betrayal, greed, and power; but it does not have to be. The story of Jesus is one of eternal truth, a symbol of peace and prosperity. It is a story that has transcended time across many cultures, histories, and religions, not just Christianity. The evils in the world, from greed, pride, wrath, envy, lust, gluttony, and sloth, destroy the shared bond between all of us. “Love thy neighbor” is the golden rule, something that even some Catholics forget to hold dear.
Later on the film, Thomas Lawrence breaks the seal on the final bedroom of the late Pope, hoping to find spiritual guidance or clues as to the final moments of his life. As he sat on the bed and held his glasses, he began to cry. It was a powerful scene, and it was at this moment that Ralph Fiennes morphed into my grandfather, Charles Palladino Senior. As our family understood from watching my grandfather’s wonderful trait of showing his emotions, we should never be afraid to cry and be vulnerable. That openness is a wonderful and powerful gift of humanity. I nudged Michael in the theatre, noting that I had made my decision to let the Warren County Board of Elections know of my desire to attend my grandfather’s funeral instead of being an election worker.
While in the room, Thomas finds a hidden collection of notes written by the late Pope, describing simony, or the act of selling church offices or roles, involving one of the cardinals. He sheds light on the issue, causing strife amongst everyone. During the next scheduled vote, a surprising event occurs that forces all the cardinals to evacuate the room for safety. With the heightened tensions, Goffredo Tedesco elicits an exasperated response and plea, stating, “Here at last we see the result of the doctrine of relativism so beloved by our liberal brothers! A relativism that sees all faiths and passing fancies accorded equal weight. We should all be ashamed! We tolerate Islam in our land, but they revile us in theirs. How long will we persist in this weakness? What we need now is a leader who understands that we are facing a true religious war.”
Everyone in the room begins to shout amongst themselves, creating a cacophony of noise that quiets down when Vincent Benitez speaks, “My brother Cardinal, with respect, what do you know about war? I have seen the lines of the dead and wounded, Christian and Muslim. When you say we have to fight, what is it you think we are fighting? You think it is those deluded men who have carried out these terrible acts today? No, my brother, the thing that we are fighting is here inside each and every one of us if we give in to hate now; if we speak of “sides” instead of speaking for every man and woman.”
He describes his work in Baghdad and Kabul, disclosing the horrors of war, as he continues, “Forgive me, but these last few days we have shown ourselves to be small petty men, we have seemed concerned only with ourselves, with Rome, with ourselves, and with power. But these things are not the Church. The Church is not tradition nor the past; the church is what we do next.” With stunned silence, we are then shown the final vote where Benitez is confirmed, taking on the name Pope Innocent.
The film ends with the new Pope, dressed in the traditional garb, walking through the doors to greet the elated crowd, as did the current new Pope Leo the 14th did on May 8th, 2025. It was an exceptional portrayal of the pope election process, mixed with philosophical and political intrigue at the balance of power in the Catholic Church.
Pope Francis died at 88 on April 21, 2025, after a lifetime of service to Argentina and the entire community of Catholics. His story will always be remembered as the beginning of breaking the perceived silence of the Vatican, as he traveled to hundreds of countries over the decade. He also spoke with media outlets with renewed vigor, as Francis Rocca of the National Catholic Register states, “Whatever Francis intended when he spoke to the media, his comments widened the Church’s Overton window, exacerbated its divisions, and gave a boost to liberal energies that will not subside anytime soon, even if the coming conclave chooses a conservative successor. They also changed the papacy itself. The next pope, no matter his personal inclinations, will feel pressure to maintain a certain level of accessibility to the media, to keep from appearing aloof or unresponsive by comparison with Francis. Whether they like it or not, his successors won’t be able to let their official teachings do all the talking.”
As Robert Francis Prevost, or Pope Leo the 14th, embarks on a new pontificate and era of the church, the Catholic community will continue to be a guiding institution for world leaders to follow. He is the first Pope born from the United States of American and attended Villanova University in Pennsylvania, a shocking fact that is still reverberating across the world.
I highly recommend watching The Two Popes, available for streaming on Netflix, and Conclave, available for streaming on Amazon Prime. Keep an open mind, for change is inevitable, but we will persevere, acknowledging the past and strengthening the future together. One act of kindness at a time.
