Conclave — Review
Conclave (2025) is how we make shallowness covered by ultra-aesthetic cosmetics—whom we call visual, audio, and acting. It buries its real potential—moral ambiguousness, spiritual doubt, and the theological debate of papacy—under a heavily political drama that relies on twisting plot and over-simplified ideological divide, giving the audience no space to contemplate.
The film presents its characters not as complex figures within Church politics but as ideological archetypes: the staunch liberal, the ultraconservative hardliner, the compassionate favorite, and the scheming outcasts—each reduced to a predefined role that leaves little room for nuance. Instead of letting the audience wrestle with the Church’s internal struggles, it positions us firmly on the liberal-compassionate side from the outset, without allowing us to understand the grey areas and political compromises that shape Vatican power plays.
For all its grandeur, the film chooses spectacle over substance. It raises big questions—progressivism versus tradition, personal ambition versus divine duty—but never dares to explore them beyond the surface. Instead, it plays like a Vatican-themed political thriller, where every revelation, big or small, is delivered with the same calculated urgency.
It could still be entertaining if we’re willing to enjoy it at face value. But for those looking for something deeper—something that provokes rather than just impresses—it’s a missed opportunity. In the end, it’s a film that poses as a theological reflection but settles for high-stakes papal chess. A good movie, but one that devastates the very potential that could have made it great.
7/10
