Conclave (2024) Review: Smart, Stylish, and Tense

Conclave is a tense, sharply acted Vatican drama that turns a pope election into something way more watchable than it has any right to be.

Conclave is basically a political knife fight in a very expensive church.

Plot

When Cardinal Lawrence is tasked with leading the selection of a new Pope, he finds himself in a web of conspiracy and intrigue that could shake the very foundations of the Catholic Church.

Good points

• Strong performances across the board, especially Ralph Fiennes

• The Vatican setting looks great and adds a lot of atmosphere

• The tension builds well without needing big action scenes

• The film feels smart and controlled

• It makes a pope election feel a lot more dramatic than you would expect

• The movie stays engaging even though it is mostly driven by dialogue

Bad points

• The ending feels a bit too neat

• It gets a little heavy-handed near the end

• It can feel a little too polished at times

My Thoughts on Conclave

A pope election that works as a thriller

Conclave takes a subject that sounds like it could be painfully dull and makes it quite gripping, if I do say so myself, where the whole film is built around a pope election, leaning into all the tension around power, pride, and secrecy that it brings, at least in film format, anyway.

Everyone here has an angle, even when they are trying very hard not to show it, giving the film an energy where it lets the pressure build until you start feeling it too, as everything becomes a battle of wills, with people trying to shape the outcome without looking like they actually are.

As said, it could have been dull, I mean, the whole setting is basically a series of rooms, hallways, and serious-looking people in robes, and even though the pacing is slow, it still manages to keep things interesting enough throughout too.

Ralph Fiennes carries the whole thing beautifully

Ralph Fiennes is the star here, playing everything with this tired, controlled, worn-down energy that fits the movie perfectly, and manages to give the film a strong center, and every time he is on screen, the movie gets that little bit better.

Stanley Tucci is also very good, and John Lithgow adds his own weight to the mix as well, all with different agendas and different kinds of messy - polished on the outside and much more difficult underneath, which is probably the most interesting thing about them.

The Vatican setting

The Vatican is used really well, because it could have been just a nice backdrop, but it actually ends up feeling big, which is what you want really for this kind of story - the long hallways, and formal processions all create a sense that everyone is trapped inside something bigger than themselves, where it simply just places these characters in a setting, then lets that atmosphere do the rest.

There is also something mildly funny, in a dry way, about how serious everybody looks at all times, as nobody is having a normal day in this movie, and nobody is casually grabbing coffee and relaxing - everyone looks like they have just been told the future of the Church is resting on their shoulders, which, to be fair, is pretty much the case.

The movie keeps the pressure on

What kept Conclave interesting for me though is how steadily it holds onto the tension, as you never get the impression that anything feels too rushed, but it also never drifts off - the conversations matter, the looks matter, all the silences matter, and even the smallest exchange can feel heavy.

It also understands that not every scene has to announce itself as being important, which gives it a much smoother and more natural feel than a lot of movies built around political maneuvering, it keeps things controlled and lets the strain build little by little.

There is also a nice amount of restraint in how the story is told, with that slow, careful pace working in its favor because it lets the atmosphere settle in, so by the time things really start tightening up, the movie has already done half the work superbly.

The ending is where it slips a little

My main issue is the ending, and without spoiling anything in case you have not watched it yet, it all felt a bit too tidy compared with everything that comes before it, as the film spends so much time building uncertainty and letting things sit in a more complicated place, then the final stretch gets a little too eager to put a neat point on it all.

That did not ruin the movie for me, but it does take a little shine off what was otherwise what I thought was a very solid experience, but the ending feels more determined to make a statement than the rest of the movie, and that pulls it slightly out of balance.

Even so, it is not the kind of ending that destroys everything before it, and like I said, what was an an enjoyable film overall to watch I thought.

Final Verdict

I found it to be a pretty smart, well acted, and much more engaging movie about electing a pope has any right to be, with a good knack for building the atmosphere and tension well.

Trailer

Film Credits

Directed by Edward Berger

Screenplay by Peter Straughan

Based on Conclave by Robert Harris

Produced by Tessa Ross, Juliette Howell, Michael Jackman, Alice Dawson and Robert Harris

Starring - Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, Isabella Rossellini and Sergio Castellitto

Cinematography by Stéphane Fontaine

Edited by Nick Emerson

Music by Volker Bertelmann

Running time - 120 minutes

More Film Posts