Movie Poster

Certainty is the great enemy of unity. Certainty is the deadly enemy of tolerance. Even Christ was not certain at the end. "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" he cried out in his agony at the ninth hour on the cross. Our faith is a living thing precisely because it walks hand-in-hand with doubt. If there was only certainty and no doubt, there would be no mystery. And therefore, no need for faith. Let us pray that God will grant us a Pope who doubts. And let him grant us a Pope who sins and asks for forgiveness and who carries on.

# Review

Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) organizes a conclave to elect the next pontiff after the passing of the previous one. He quickly finds himself embroiled in secrets and intrigue associated with the leading candidates.

This is one of my favourite Fiennes’ roles as he conveys a sense of gravity and nails the portrayal of inner moral conflict. The supporting cast were very nuanced as well, such as Stanley Tucci’s progressive Cardinal Bellini, John Lithgow’s moderate Cardinal Tremblay, and Sergio Castellitto’s traditionalist Cardinal Tedesco. The story really drew me in and many of the themes were very interesting, such as the conflict between the more liberal and the more conservative factions. I enjoy political thrillers and this film delivered in spades. The costumes and the settings are very authentic and the cinematography is fantastically elegant. Only thing I didn’t like is the lackluster ending that was both anticlimactic and also felt forced.

# Conclusion

A great movie (except the ending).

# Overall rating: 8.0

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