The film begins with Cardinal Lawrence, the Dean of Cardinals, walking purposively to the papal apartments to perform his duty of examining the dead pope's body. Fiennes fills the role very well and is a very believable character. The film is here getting to a good start, for it shows the procedures that are followed at the pope's death, all of which show that the film is well researched. I believe that the film presents the Vatican in a balanced way, being alert to the problems faced by the church, which inevitably surface at Conclaves without focusing excessively on any one of them.
There are four cardinals other than Cardinal Lawrence who are significant in this film. There is an̈ Italian traditionalist, Cardinal Tedesco, who shows his theological colours by arriving cloaked in red, a sign of his commitment to traditional ways such as the Latin mass, known as the Tridentine rite, There is an African Cardinal, Cardinal Adeyemi, who is a favourite in the church's desire to honour Africa with a black pope, and a Canadian , Cardinal Tremblay, who is deemed very likely to get the papacy. A fourth, Cardinal Bellini, an Italian is a reformer, a stout foe of the traditionalist,
A surprise arrival is a relatively young, unknown Cardinal, Cardinal Benitez, who was the archbishop of Kabul. He has been secretly made a cardinal "in pectore", which means "in the breast" a technique for appointing someone who is the cardinal for an area where the church is heavily persecuted, as it is under the control of Muslim extremists. The man has extensive experience as a missionary. A good. candidate, but somewhat different. Cardinal Lawrence, as Dean of Cardinals, has to decide whether to accept the newcomer. He does so, and the consequences are significant..
The nuns play their part. They do the domestic arrangements, feeding the Cardinals and cleaning their accommodation. The nuns are not brokers in the male cardinals' machinations, but quietly get on with their duties. This is realistic, for in the recent scandals that have beset the church not many women have been culprits, as opposed to males, who form the bulk of the miscreants
Comments
The Vat8can, to my knowl3dge, has never produced or sponsored a film of the character that you identify.
Your last paragraph advises us that "I found this film to be thoroughly enjoyable, and at times in the future I will watch it again. The film addresses some of the issues affecting the Roman Catholic Church, but it approaches them with wisdom and an open mind. The characters are well-imagined and are all believable. I would recommend this film to all readers."
Is there such a thing as a Vatican-ideated, Vatican-involved film -- undoubtedly documentary ;-D -- about papal conclaves?
Thank you for the comment below, in answer to my previous observation and question.
Some online sources considered the papal election of Pope Benedict XVI as by a narrow margin against his strongest competitor, the subsequent Pope Francis.
Is that an accurate accounting?
As long as he stayed a cardinal he could be elected. It was not Benedict's taking the library job that concerned John Paul, but rather that Benedict was needed in the Holy Office as a theologian.
Thank you for your comment below, in answer to my previous observation and question.
The second paragraph to the second subheading, The plotting, advises us that "John Paul the Second refused Cardinal Ratzinger's resignation, when he wanted to retire to head the Vatican library."
If Pope Jean Paul II had accepted Cardinal Ratzinger's resignation, might the latter not have become Pope Benedict XVI?
Thanks. Males are avid to be pack leader. Even religious males.
Very interesting presentation of a mysterious world of power behind the Varican walls. I'll put the movie on my watching list. Thank you!
No. There are women working in a variety of jobs in the Vatican, some in positions of responsibility.
Thank you for your comment below, in answer to my previous observation and question.
It makes sense, because of nun orders, that women manage some of what makes the Vatican the Vatican.
Would all women who wend their way in and out for Vatican work be nuns?
I cannot think of a time when the Vatican did not use female services. Remember , it is not a monastery, so women could enter the building. It belongs to the diocese of Rome.