Conclave 4K 2024 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

After the sudden death of the Pope, the cardinals prepare for the conclave - the election of a new head of the Catholic Church. Cardinal Lawrence is entrusted with the management and organization of the procedure. Soon he learns a few not the most pleasant secrets about the main candidates for the place of the Pope, and this can dramatically affect the result of the election and shake the foundations of the Church.

Review 4K Movie

What happens if you mix any Dan Brown talmud with the atmosphere of a closed studio procedural? Edward Berger has attempted to answer this fascinating but complex question. The German's previous work has already won an Oscar ('On the Western Front Without Change'), and this one has some chances too. In any case, the weaknesses in the 'Conclave' to detect much more difficult than cashing trumps.

Vatican Hill is in for a challenging night. The day before, another Pope died suddenly. This means that the gears are set in motion by the ancient and sophisticated procedure of electing a new hierarch. There are several candidates for the place of the supreme pontiff - a conservative Italian, the first African pope in history, a liberal with intentions to take the Church down an unconventional path, and even a cardinal from exotic Kabul, who was appointed in pectore. It's up to the Dean of the College, played by Rife Faines, to sort out all those folds in the ceremonial robes.

Watching this two-hour thriller is as addictive as wandering the corridors of Vatican palaces. Berger deliberately emphasizes symbols, angles, and sudden passphrases. Only the attentive will conclude why the new Pope is named Innocent. Or how the Holy Spirit, the only real participant in the movie from the outside, penetrates into the closed space of the election? And what does the dialog with Islam have to do with it? The German is generally interested in making big stories out of private plots. That's why the Catholic backstage is no less suitable for this task than the trenches somewhere near Lorraine.

'Conclave' is maximally poignant for all its leisurely construction. The movie deals with virtually every painful issue of the church. One prominent cardinal dabbles in corruption, another drowns in the sin of the loins, a third dreams of Catholicism returning to the days of Torquemada. In short, there is much to reflect on. An interesting through-line is the theme of doubt. Berger places them above faith, at least in the question of primacy. Doubt creates uncertainty, which in turn keeps the mystery, and the mystery is a direct path to faith. Without faith, it is clear that there is no religion, much less a church.

The priests in the 'Conclave' are experiencing, if not a crisis of faith in God, then certainly a crisis of faith in institutions. The traditional semi-Protestant separation of religion from church is a companion to almost every pathos-laden sermon in the movie. A separate story is an unalterable reminder that even the holiest pontiff is human. 'We serve an ideal, but we are not it ourselves' is one of the mottos of the two-hour action, subtly emphasizing the human nature of Christ.

Feynes is good in character depth, playing with undertones, sometimes wrinkles on his forehead, sometimes drops of sweat. Laconic but memorable role of Stanley Tucci, the same, but more impulsive in Sergio Castellitto. Isabella Rossellini is responsible for the women in the movie. She has little voice, no cardinal voice at all, but she speaks in the right places and at the right time. The theme of women is the main spoiler of 'Conclave', but you have to listen to the whispers and screams to get into it. In the silence of the Vatican corridors it's a little easier.

What isn't the most logical ending about? Is it a challenge to Christ and his teachings? Hardly. Rather it is a challenge to his interpreters. Once more about humanity, once more about certainty. And there is nothing more human than ambition. After all, if 'every cardinal secretly chooses a papal name', one can as easily get lost in the search for holiness as in the labyrinths of a confined space.

As a result, 'Conclave' is a movie chest. Once opened, one enters the world of Michelangelo's frescoes, ecumenical conspiracies and Hesychast interpretations. And if we used to think that everyone will be rewarded according to his faith, 'Conclave' convinces us of the opposite - according to his doubts. Outrageous? Of course it is. And electoral events are no different. Unless, of course, this is Dan Brown's world.