Conclave, rated PG
*** ½  

Conclave is an excellent film about the process of selecting a new pope after the death of the current pope. The film features a strong cast and was directed by Oscar nominee Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front). The film was written by Oscar nominee Peter Straughan (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy) and Robert Harris, based on his 2016 book Conclave.
Cardinal Lawrence, played by two-time Oscar nominee Ralph Fiennes (The English Patient, Schindler’s List), is the Dean of the College of Cardinals. It is his responsibility to preside over the College of Cardinals, sequestered in a special dormitory to select the next pope by vote. Cardinal Lawrence has no interest in being the next pope. In fact, he has had doubts, finds it hard to pray, and recently had asked the Pope to be relieved of his duties, but the Pope rejected his resignation.

The Cardinals meet in the Sistine Chapel. Their ballots are filled out and counted by hand. Then, the ballots are burned. The only communication during this process is by smoke, gray for a ballot that did not result in enough votes for any one candidate to make a selection, white when the selection is made.
We see the Cardinals go through several votes without a candidate receiving the necessary 72 votes. There are secrets exposed, struggles for power, and the story has surprising twists.
Lawrence takes his responsibility very seriously. At one point he states that he does not want to hear about any concerns that might make a candidate unworthy, when he does see or hear about a possible issue, he pursues it, even to the point of breaking a rule.
The acting in the film is superb, led by Fiennes as Cardinal Lawrence. Two-time Oscar nominee John Lithgow (The World According to Garp, Terms of Endearment), portrays Cardinal Tremblay, and Lucian Msamati plays African Cardinal Adeyemi, a serious contender to be the next Pope. Lawrence’s friend, Cardinal Bellini, played by Oscar nominee Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones), has liberal views and wants the next Pope to keep the church moving in that direction, and Cardinal Tedesco, played by Sergio Castellitto, who is very conservative and would take the church in that direction. Isabella Rossellini (Blue Velvet), plays Sister Agnes, a nun who plays an important role in brief scenes throughout the film. Then there is Carlos Diehz as Cardinal Benitez, a Cardinal that nobody knows about as his appointment by the Pope to serve in Afghanistan was secret.
The cinematography in the film by Stéphane Fontaine is superb, and the musical score by Oscar winner Volker Bertelmann (All Quiet on the Western Front), added a lot to the suspense of the film.
The film is rated PG and has no concerns regarding language or explicit sexuality, though there is one brief scene of violence.
Conclave is an excellent film, perhaps the best we have seen this year, though we were disappointed in the surprise twist ending, which lowered our overall rating for the film.