Best Pictures #116: 2024 (97th) Academy Awards Best Picture Nominee: Conclave

by A.J.

Best Pictures #116: 2024 (97th) Academy Awards Best Picture Nominee

Conclave

“No sane man would want the papacy.”

A movie about the college of cardinals meeting in conclave, the paradoxically famous and secretive gathering to elect the new pope, could be so reverent and serious as to be pandering and dull or it could be so artificially sensational as to be tawdry and disrespectful. Director Edward Berger's Conclave, based on the novel by Robert Harris, finds a delicate and wonderful balance. This isn’t an exposé of the Catholic church, nor is it a Christ-sploitation movie. This is an exciting and thrilling film full of intrigue and secret conversations, incredible performances, and excellent filmmaking on every level. The result is an absorbing and electrifying film, without a doubt one of the best of 2024. 

After the death of the pope (from natural causes), the task of assembling and running the conclave falls to the dean of the college of cardinals, Cardinal Lawrence played by Ralph Fiennes. We learn early on that he is dealing with doubts, not so much in faith but in himself, and tried to resign from his position at the Vatican but the pope refused his resignation. He is dedicated to doing his job well, but everyone and everything seems to be against the conclave running smoothly. All the better for us. The candidates emerge: the liberal Bellini (Stanley Tucci), the conservative Adeyemi (Lucian Msamati), the ultra-conservative Tedesco (Sergio Castellitto), the opportunist Tremblay (John Lithgow), and the drama and infighting begins. 

The cast is an incredible collection of great performers, some well known, others lesser known but no less impressive. The breakout performance belongs to Sergio Castellitto as the ultra-conservative Italian Cardinal Tedesco. He arrives with such force that wind billows under his red coat making it look like a cape. At one point he howls with laughter and is constantly vaping. Carlos Diehz finds the exact notes necessary for the quiet and mysterious Cardinal Benitez, who no one knew about and arrived only at the last minute. Brían F. O'Byrne as O'Malley, Cardinal Lawrence’s right hand man, gets to play the only character who is maybe more stressed out than Cardinal Lawrence and provides some comic relief. Isabella Rossellini lends her great screen presence to a small and mostly silent role. Nevertheless she has a stand out scene and curtseys like it is a mic drop. Of course Tucci and Lithgow shine at every moment. 

At the head of the incredible ensemble is Ralph Fiennes, giving one of his best performances in a very impressive career. His Best Actor nomination is most deserved. It is clear Lawrence does not want his job, and he certainly doesn’t want votes when they start coming his way, but he also wants everything to go the way it should and the most worthy man to be elected. When his frustrations boil over, even his outbursts feel constrained, but Fiennes conveys everything that Lawrence tries to conceal. Lawrence does not have the most lines. He is a character who observes and reacts. Fiennes makes a would-be passive character into a sympathetic and relatable leading man.

Many reviews have called Conclave pulpy, trashy, even like an airport novel, but I have a word that better describes Conclave: fun. I suspect that this caught many people off guard and will continue to do. For several scenes Cardinal Lawrence has to be a detective, searching for information and answers without directly breaking the sequester. Characters gossip, scandals are uncovered; there are whispers in hallways late at night, and shouts in the cafeteria. The pageantry and rituals of the Vatican provide a certain level of class and seriousness, but the brilliance of this story is that it remembers that all of these aged holy men are just people and people can be petty, ambitious, deceitful, secretive, and sometimes even righteous. The Oscar nominated screenplay by Peter Straughan (who also wrote the adaptation for the brilliant character piece Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) provides for nuance as well as showpieces and speeches. Nothing that happens in Conclave feels contrived or unbelievable. Even an explosion (shown in the trailers) does not feel out of place.

Of course you don’t have to be Catholic or religious or familiar with anything about the church to enjoy Conclave. Neither director Berger or Straughan’s screenplay condescend to the audience. Explanations arise as they would in the natural course of events. When Lawrence tries to cardinal-splain simony to Bellini, Bellini responds curtly, "I'm aware of what simony is." If you are not aware of what simony is it becomes apparent a few scenes later. At its core, this is a movie about a stressed out manager, which is something that is very relatable.

Nominees: Tessa Ross, Juliette Howell and Michael A. Jackman, Producers

Director: Edward Berger

Screenplay: Peter Straughan; based on the novel by Robert Harris

Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Isabella Rossellini

Production Companies: FilmNation Entertainment, House Productions, Indian Paintbrush

Distributor: Focus Features

Release Date: October 25th, 2024

Total Nominations: 8, including Best Picture

Other Nominations: Actor-Ralph Fiennes; Supporting Actress-Isabella Rossellini; Adapted Screenplay-Peter Straughan; Editing- Nick Emerson; Production Design-Suzie Davies (production designer), Cynthia Sleiter (set decorator); Costume Design-Lisy Christl; Original Score-Volker Bertelmann