Is Conclave more of a stodgy prestige film or a thrill-a-minute whodunnit?
In 2022, German-Austrian director Edward Berger took the award season by storm with his harrowing adaptation of All Quiet On The Western Front. The war drama garnered nine Oscar nominations and four wins, including Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best International Feature, and Best Score. It was an immersive and uncompromising experience that examined the consequences of war both physically and psychologically.
Berger is on track to repeat some of his previous success with the crowd-pleasing film adaptation of Robert Harris’s bestselling novel, Conclave. However, the tonal departure Conclave displays in contrast to Berger’s previous work may surprise viewers. The aesthetic opulence is still showcased, but an undercurrent of soapy drama, jarring plot twists, and propulsive thrills prioritize entertainment over emotional depth. For me, this is a feature, not a bug, as it redefines what a prestige drama can be when it is not hellbent or beholden to being impactful or virtue signaling.
Following the pope’s sudden death, Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) becomes ensnared in a dubious plot to elect a “worthy” successor. The highly-coveted seat of leadership incites the most unseemly human impulses in the Catholic Church’s leaders, putting Lawrence in the middle of a conspiratorial effort to tarnish everything the church claims to stand for. As each electoral process commences, shocking revelations are unearthed with dire consequences. Lawrence must vet the prospective nominees for merit and morality without sacrificing his own.
Who is the intended audience for this film?
Conclave is a stylish, timely, and engrossing political thriller that hums along at a steady and absorbing pace. It generates tension and suspense through thoughtful discourse and ideas rather than action set pieces. There are more than a few sobering parallels to our nation’s tenuous electoral process, both externally and internally. The corrosive nature of power is a theme that permeates throughout. It examines the way this lust for power can corrupt even the most honorable of men.
At its core, though, Conclave is a pulpy and deceptively kitschy little page-turner with It more than a few tricks up its sleeve (err…robe). It has the drama and intrigue of a good trashy novel filtered through the lens of a prestige film. Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, and Isabella Rossellini give fantastic, Oscar-caliber performances. The entire ensemble brings an emotional weight the screenplay often evades for tawdry entertainment and narrative pizzazz. The film is equally intelligent and outlandish in its plotting and thematic revelations. It’s at its best when leaning heavily into the silly, procedural John Grisham-style melodrama. The incredible acting, costuming, production design, and score are just a bonus.
To sum it up, it’s the perfect Dad movie that mom and the older kids can get swept up in too.
