Conclave was, in my opinion, the best movie I have seen in years. I sat down and watched this movie on a random Thursday night by the request of my roommate and was genuinely amazed by the content and message of the movie. Centered around the death of the Pope and the subsequent conclave made up of hundreds of cardinals choosing a new one, the movie delves deep into the issues of religious conspiracy, ideologies, and sexual identity. Beware, spoilers ahead. Â
Renowned actor Ralph Fiennes portrays Cardinal Lawrence of England, the dean of the College of Cardinals, who leads the conclave full of cardinals of different nationalities, ethnicities, and of course, socio-political ideologies. Smear campaigns, jealousies, scandals, and even a terrorist attack plague the convening of the conclave. Cardinal Bellini (played by Stanley Tucci) even declares at one point that the conclave is “a war”. Amidst all the chaos, a new, unknown Cardinal Benitez, who was made a cardinal in private, arrives and even begins to gain votes in the election. Â
The backdrop of the movie is what makes it so incredibly moving, as while all the cardinals mourn, gather, and elect the new Pope, a certain group is completely left out and forgotten amongst them— the sisters. The women who have dedicated their life to serving the church, spreading the faith and loving the Pope are completely marginalized and shut out of all the conversations and voting, and the movie does not let that become unknown. Â
The movie continues to delve into the scandals that plague all of the front runners’ campaigns to become Pope, until unknown newcomer Benitez eventually garners enough votes to become elected. When asked what name he would like to take as Pope, he chooses “Innocent.” However, when Lawrence does more research on the questionable circumstances surrounding Benitez’s journey to becoming a cardinal in pectore (in secret) and the fact that the Pope had paid to have him seek a medical appointment in Geneva, he questions him. Â
In a shocking twist, it is revealed that the medical appointment paid for by the Pope was for Benitez to have a laparoscopic hysterectomy to remove a uterus and ovaries that he was born with. Benitez, the new Pope, is intersex, and ended up refusing the procedure because he believes he is “what God made” him. Â
While incredibly shocking, the ending greatly emphasizes the point that gender and sex are a social construction and the fact that Benitez was elected the Pope without any sort of sign that he was a woman (which is outlawed by Catholic law) further goes to serve this point. The juxtaposition of having a large group of men completely shutting out the opinions of women who are equally devoted to the same cause while, unbeknownst to them, having a person biologically identical, on the internal, to the sisters become the Pope highlights the hypocrisy of that Catholic law. Â
The cardinals and sisters both cannot control the way God made them. They have taken extremely similar paths and share the same faith, yet they cannot hold the same titles because of the way God made them. However, they are all humans alike, and biological differences prove to be the only concrete distinction, which Benitez’s existence proves to interrupt. This message can be translated into the daily life of all intersex and queer people, who despite all the discrimination and difficulties they may encounter, cannot control the way God made them. Â
In all, Conclave beautifully demonstrates and captures real life issues and subjects present in everyday life and in the positions of authority in the Catholic Church without relying on violence, sex or flashy imagery, just incredible writing and complex character dynamics. Furthermore, a movie about religion that touches on incredibly controversial issues such as gender and intersexuality is an incredibly brave move by the filmmakers and marks a milestone in recognizing these issues related to the church. Â
The movie was nominated for 8 Oscars and won Best Adapted Screenplay. It is available to watch on Peacock, and I highly recommend for anyone who wants a fresh new commentary on the Catholic Church and conclave process. Â