The film Conclave is based on the book of the same name by Robert Harris.

Read on for a review of film by Clive Hodges.

Classification: PG (mild themes) running time: two hours; languages: English with occasional speeches in Italian, Spanish and Latin (with English subtitles) genre: drama.

Conclave is a place that can be locked up. It comes from the Latin – clavis – meaning key. A Papal Conclave is where the cardinals of the Catholic Church gather in secret to elect the next pontiff.

In the film, Conclave, the Pope is dead and the throne is vacant. It’s the job of the Dean of Cardinals to summon the most senior clergy and organise the conclave.

Voting continues until a contender receives two-thirds of the cardinals attending. One hundred and eight cardinals have arrived and are sequestered; two-thirds is 72 votes.

Four cardinals are thought to be the main contenders as they are well-known within the Catholic Church:

Aldo Bellini holds a senior position at the Vatican. He is considered a progressive.

Joshua Adeyemi also holds a senior role at the Vatican. He is considered a conservative.

Joseph Tremblay manages the properties and the finances. He is considered a moderate.

Goffredo Tedesco is the Patriarch of Venice. He is considered a traditionalist.

The contest is between those who want to continue the path set by the dead Pope and those who want to return to the past.

Other characters that attempt to influence the final result are:

Cardinal Thomas Lawrence, Dean of the College of Cardinals.
Cardinal Vincent Benitez, Archbishop of Kabul, Afghanistan.
Archbishop Janusz Wozniak, Prefect of the Papal Household and the late Pope’s confidant.
Sister Agnes, a senior nun responsible for running the Casa Santa Marta (where the cardinals are staying)

The direction, editing, and cinematography are exceptional. The soundtrack and acting are superb. The inspired screenplay by Peter Straughan is based on the novel by Robert Harris.

Conclave is a lavish and impressive film. It has ambition, obsession, intrigue, and corruption. Religious doubt, lack of morality and loss of faith are in there somewhere.

Wry humour and a touch of melodrama – attributed initially to Divine intervention – lightens the mood.

Rating: ****½

Reviewed by Clive Hodges

ABOUT THE BOOK

The Pope is dead.

Behind the locked doors of the Sistine Chapel, one hundred and eighteen cardinals from all over the globe will cast their votes in the world’s most secretive election.

They are holy men. But they have ambition. And they have rivals.

Over the next seventy-two hours one of them will become the most powerful spiritual figure on earth.
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