This movie was already on my watchlist but, after its release, many people seemed to be talking about it online. Everyone was saying it was good and fun and one person tweeted it was like if Gossip Girl took place in the Vatican. Who wouldn’t want to see that movie? I, however, made a grave error. On Tuesday night, November 5 (Election Day), I was supposed to get dinner with a friend but the plans were canceled. I decided instead of sitting on my couch all night and watching the news, I would go to the movies, my happy place. As soon as this movie started, I realized my mistake. I knew full well what the movie was about going in, but I guess I just didn’t put the pieces together until they were right in front of my face. Conclave is about the assembly of cardinals at the Vatican to choose a new pope. By voting. This is an election movie. Where liberal and conservative factions of the church face off. Where a character literally says the line, “Is this what we’re reduced to? Considering the least worst option?” A full mirror of American politics and I was sitting there on election night trying not to think about the world ending. So instead of escapism, I got a panic attack in a movie theater. I can’t even try to pretend that the circumstances of my viewing experiences didn’t color my feelings towards the movie, but maybe that means the film was effective in communicating its message.

Conclave is adapted from the novel by Robert Harris which has often been referred to as an “airport novel”. This term is applied to a book that isn’t as valuable as it is an inexpensive form of entertainment during travel. The movie kind of feels the same way. It’s not as deep as it sometimes appears to be, and is mostly just pulpy, thrilling, sometimes a little silly, entertainment. We follow protagonist Cardinal Lawrence, played by Ralph Fiennes, who is the Dean of the College of Cardinals. This means he is in charge of overseeing this election. The star-studded cast also includes Stanley Tucci as Cardinal Bellini, the liberal cardinal who publicly claims to not want the job of Pope but privately campaigns for it, John Lithgow as Cardinal Tremblay, a cardinal plagued by mystery and rumor, Sergio Castellitto as Cardinal Tedesco, a highly conservative cardinal with loud opinions, Lucian Msamati as Cardinal Adeyemi, a cardinal who receives early support until a scandal hits, Carlos Diehz as Cardinal Benitez, a mysterious newcomer who none of the other cardinals even knew about, and Isabella Rossellini as Sister Agnes, the cardinals’ head caterer and housekeeper. Each character brings their own unique but strong personality into the hothouse that is created by their seclusion during this process. Of course we’re going to see heads butt. The performances are all thoroughly engaging, but Fiennes and Tucci, in particular, make a lasting impact.

Conclave is interested in many deeper themes but it asks questions more than it tries to provide answers. One idea that has been popular in many stories is the quest for power. Plato said, “Only those who do not seek power are qualified to hold it,” and many of the most famous tales seem to agree with him. Dumbledore tells Harry Potter, “It is a curious thing, Harry, but perhaps those who are best suited to power are those who have never sought it. Those who, like you, have leadership thrust upon them, and take up the mantle because they must, and find to their own surprise that they wear it well.” In Game of Thrones, Varys says of Jon Snow, “Have you considered the best ruler might be someone who doesn’t want to rule?” Conclave echoes these quotes stating, “No sane man would want the papacy. The men who are dangerous are the ones who do want it.” Does the pursuit of power, of leadership, make someone inherently ill-suited for the job? When did we start to villainize ambition? Why is wanting it so bad? Many of the cardinals in Conclave openly campaign for the head job while others either vehemently deny wanting the position or sit quietly in the background. But the movie seems to think that even the ones who claim not to want it are really just lying to themselves. That, deep down, everyone has a desire for power. Some are just more open about it than others. So if that’s true, how are we to determine who the best leaders will be?

The film also looks at concepts that more closely relate to the church, like faith and doubt. Cardinal Lawrence struggles with his growing doubt in the church throughout the movie and initially cites it as a reason he should not be considered for the position of Pope. Cardinal Bellini admits to similar doubts but specifies that there is a difference between losing faith in God and losing faith in the church. I thought that was a really powerful distinction that separates faith and religion from these establishments we’ve built around them. Faith can come in many forms and, at the end of the day, it really just comes down to you and whatever you believe in. Cardinal Lawrence’s struggles with doubt come up in the sermon he gives just before the election process begins. Going off-script, he encourages the gathered cardinals to select someone “who sins and asks for forgiveness,” over the someone who claims to be pure. Sinning makes us human and anyone who claims not to is lying. Relatedly, he preaches about the perils of certainty: “There is one sin which I have come to fear above all others… certainty. Certainty is the great enemy of unity … the deadly enemy of tolerance. Our faith is a living thing precisely because it walks hand in hand with doubt. If there was only certainty, and no doubt, there would be no mystery. And therefore, no need for faith. Let us pray that God grants us a pope who doubts.” This quote is fascinating in so many ways but, to me, it speaks about open-mindedness, something that we don’t often associate with religion. You can believe what you believe, but you should never be 100% sure that you are right about anything. It is important to leave that wiggle room to have your mind changed. I think that is such a pertinent message these days when everyone seems so set in their convictions and completely unwilling to even hear other thoughts and opinions. Doubt can be a powerful asset.

For a film about a seemingly stuffy proceeding, Conclave actually has a very sharp aesthetic. The color palette is mostly stark blacks and whites and reds. The sounds are loud and the score is dramatic. A lot of attention is paid to the precise detail and protocol involved in the actual process. We see many meticulous shots of ballots being filled out, folded, submitted, counted, bound, and burned, resulting in the infamous black or white smoke that signals the public. Another running visual motif is elements of modernity in the traditional. The conclave is a centuries-old practice, but this is occurring in modern day. It’s nearly impossible not to let the outside world bleed in at least a little bit. Shots like a pile of cigarette butts on the marble floor of the Vatican courtyard, a cardinal using an iPhone, or one of the cardinals vaping stood out to me as so striking and strange. Or even the cardinals in their full regalia walking the halls of their living accommodations during this time, which resemble simple, streamlined hotel rooms. This visual cue mirrors the topic debated by the cardinals of modernity vs. traditionality. Some briefly acknowledge the issues of sexual and racist prejudices within organized religion and the sexual scandals related to the church in recent years, wanting to bring about a new era. But others push back, equating tradition with stability in a time where people feel more unsure about the future than ever.

I had seen people saying that this movie was a “crowd pleaser”, but I still didn’t expect my theater to be as bustling as it was. And after seeing the film, it definitely wasn’t what I would have thought I’d be getting from a “crowd pleaser”. Probably mostly because of the shocking, wild, truly unpredictable ending. But despite all of the mitigating circumstances, I enjoyed the movie. It feels like the kind of movie you would watch on cable (meant complimentary because I do like those movies) which I guess is the movie equivalent of an airport novel. I will definitely have to try watching this one again in a few months and see if it hits different (aka doesn’t give me a panic attack). Would definitely recommend!

2024 Count: 29 seasons/specials, 58 movies