As rival factions maneuver during the election for the next pope, American Cardinal Bellini (Stanley Tucci) rejects a proposal to use stolen documents to smear his rival.
His decision is not entirely based on moral grounds.
"I would be the Richard Nixon of popes," he says, in a scene that best captures the film's clever plot, wit, and vivid characters. Conclave.
The film takes us right behind the scenes of the secretive, ritualized process that takes place in the Vatican after the pope dies, but it feels more like a thrilling, contemporary political thriller.
Edward Berger, whose Nothing new in the west (2022) won the Oscar for Best International Film, directs with great precision and fidelity to real-life conclaves, evoking its essential conflict: this ancient ritual now taking place in the media-inundated 21st century.
This connection between the ancient and the modern is actually what inspired Robert Harris's 2016 bestselling novel of the same name, on which the film is based.
- How a new pope is chosen
- Who are the cardinals who elect the next pope and where do they come from?
- Who will be the next pope? Key candidates in an unpredictable race
Harris tells the BBC that the idea came to him in 2013, while, in the middle of finishing a trilogy about Cicero set in ancient Rome, he was watching the news about the election of Pope Francis.
"Just before the new pope appeared on the balcony, the windows on either side were filled with the faces of the cardinal electors who had come to watch him.
"I looked at their faces, all older men, cunning, some very good-natured and holy, some very cynical.
"And I thought, 'Oh, my God, I'm watching the Roman Senate,'" Harris says.
He noted that "the ruling Senate, composed entirely of men, continued to live on, and these older men who governed everything were a direct link to the Roman Republic."
"I thought it was absolutely fascinating, politics in its rawest form," he says of the moment he began researching conclaves.
In his Oscar-nominated performance, Ralph Fiennes is at the very heart of the film and gives a heartfelt spiritual weight as the righteous English Cardinal Lawrence, tasked with leading the conclave even as his own faith in his calling is shaken.
The story begins with the death of the pope, and the filmmakers conducted in-depth research to capture the authentic details of a conclave.
Cardinals arrive from all over the world and live in modest rooms in a dormitory-like building, Casa Santa Marta.
Once the conclave begins, they are locked up, hand over their phones and other devices, cut off from access to the internet or any news from the outside world, and sworn to secrecy.
They vote using a complex method in the Sistine Chapel, writing the name of the future pope on a piece of paper, which is then placed on a silver tray and placed in an urn.
Voting continues day after day until a pope is elected.
Everything is true, except that the Casa Santa Marta and the Sistine Chapel were built in Cinecitta's Roman studio.
- The largest trial in the Vatican in recent history - accusations of embezzlement of 350 million euros
- Pope: God loves "even the worst among us"
- The Pope told the clergy: "Don't watch pornography, that's where the devil lurks"
Political divisions
All the ornate decorations, authentic details, and bright red hats of the cardinals do not interfere with the struggles for political supremacy, which are equally realistic.
Berger tells the BBC that, understandably, the human ambitions of cardinals are similar to those of any other institution.
"The CEO is gone and people are going to start fighting openly, they're going to pull out knives and try to take that position, in Washington or, in this case, the Church, whatever," he says.
"We think of it as an ancient spiritual ritual, and these men are somehow sacred."
"We put them on a pedestal, but when you look at them a little closer, you'll see that they have cell phones, they smoke, they have the same problems, sins, and secrets as the rest of us."
"The Pope ends up in a plastic body bag like the rest of us. And that was important to me, to bring them into the modern world."
Prizes
- A conclave was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture.
- Ralph Fiennes was nominated for Best Actor, and Isabella Rossellini was nominated for Best Supporting Actress.
- Costume designer Lisi Kristl was also nominated.
- The film's screenwriter was the only one to win an Oscar, having previously won a Golden Globe for Best Screenplay.
- A conclave was nominated in 12 Bafta categories, winning four.
Harris says he "wanted to portray the real divisions in the Church, which exist just as much as in secular politics."
As in politics today, the fictitious rivals here are divided into clearly demarcated liberal and conservative camps.
Bellini, one of the favorites, is an advocate of liberal standards, open-minded towards issues such as the role of women in the Church.
The second favorite is Italian Cardinal Tedesco (Sergio Castellito), a conservative who wants to bring back the Latin Mass.
Other candidates include the enigmatic Canadian Tremblay (John Lithgow), Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati), who hopes to become the first African pope, and the little-known Benitez (Carlos Díaz), who has been secretly appointed Cardinal of Kabul (a position that, in fact, does not exist).
Berger builds tension as everyone schems extensively, deliberately leaking information to the media and smearing rivals, in a tense style reminiscent of political thrillers such as All the president's people.
Outside the tranquility of the Sistine Chapel, Bellini claims he does not want the job despite his followers gathering votes for him to block Tedesco.
This plot twist is not at all far-fetched.
Dan Wakeen, who reported for the New York Times on the conclaves that elected Pope Benedict in 2005 and Pope Francis in 2013, tells the BBC:
"A cardinal who wants to become pope would do the exact opposite of announcing it out loud."
"This kind of naked ambition is a guarantee of failure."
In a book-length interview published in April 2024, Pope Francis personally admitted that in 2005 he was unknowingly supported as a candidate in an attempt to block the election of conservative Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who became Pope Benedict.
And even when the cardinals isolate themselves, the media still casts a big shadow.
In the film, when a rival exposes a cardinal's past during a conclave, Lawrence bluntly tells him, "You will never be pope."
Alluding to well-known real-life church scandals involving sexual abuse by priests, he says: "Nothing scares our curia more than the thought of more sexual scandals."
- Victims of abuse in France told the church: "You have to pay for all the wrongdoings"
- Former Pope failed to respond to sexual abuse allegations - report
- German priests abused thousands of children
History of controversy
In the 15th century, Pope Alexander VI, a Borgia, allegedly rose to that position through bribery.
In the 16th century, one conclave lasted 72 days, and when the main favorite died, it was rumored that he was poisoned.
At that time, Roman bankers took bets on who would win, creating a direct connection from history to the circus atmosphere of today's media world.
In a BBC report In 2013, it said: "St. Peter's Square has become a kind of Colosseum. Television tents have been set up at every viewing point, just waiting for the games to begin."
The Guardian published the article "Choose Your Own Pope".
Today, part of that maneuvering takes place in public.
Before the vote began in 2013, American cardinals were forced to stop holding press conferences, under pressure from other cardinals, while Italian cardinals were known to have continued to leak information to the press.
- The largest trial in the Vatican in recent history - accusations of embezzlement of 350 million euros
- How influential are the Pope and the Catholic Church in the world?
- Francis: The traditional pope from South America who changed the Catholic Church
But in the film, most of the lobbying for votes still happens behind the scenes, before and after the conclave officially begins.
Wakekin says that during this period, "the cardinals often eat together and may give subtle hints about who they think would be the best candidate," a reality that is a central element of the film - although the fictional cardinals do much more than just hint.
While Berger agrees that Conclave is often driven by politics, he points out that there is "a kind of deep second layer that is what the film is really about," which is Lawrence's internal frictions.
"He's going through a crisis of faith. He says, 'As a cardinal, I have difficulty praying.'
"It's like me saying, 'I have trouble trusting the images my camera captures.' It's an existential crisis."
Berger says it's a problem viewers should be able to identify with.
"It's religion in this case, but it could also be your inner confidence. That's where I found myself and that's why I wanted to make a film," he says.
Another less conspicuous but crucial aspect of the Conclave is Isabella Rossellini's role as Sister Agnes, who is in charge of the nuns brought in to cook, prepare, and generally serve the cardinals.
They are meant to be quiet in the background, but as Agnes says in a scene that completely changes the direction of the story: "God gave us eyes and ears."
Berger says, "I kept telling Isabelle, when you're in a scene, we really need to see you, see what you're thinking, and be with you."
"And that's why she always had a big plan, she wasn't just part of the scene."
"The patriarchal structure has been targeted through this topic," he adds.
All of these simmering elements, including Agnes' role, lead to a shocking ending that we must not spoil for you.
Harris says, "I didn't just throw that ending in as a fun twist. It's woven into the very fabric of what the novel and the film are about."
He also received praise from one of his sources for the material.
"I was helped by - he has died, unfortunately, so I'm sure he wouldn't mind me revealing it - the English Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor."
After sending Murphy-O'Connor a copy of the book, Harris says:
"To my great surprise, he sent me a letter from an enthusiastic reader saying:
'This is exactly what a conclave looks like. Your central cardinal is exactly what we cardinals would like to be.'
"And as for the ending, I told myself, it's just a novel."
- The first cardinal from Orthodox Serbia
- From bouncer to pontiff: Five things you might not know about Pope Francis
- Pope Francis was a vocal critic of the powerful, his influence felt far beyond the faith.
BBC is in Serbian from now on and on YouTube, follow us HERE.
Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube i Viber. If you have a topic suggestion for us, please contact bbcnasrpskom@bbc.co.uk
Bonus video:
