Conclave has already made a name for itself for being one of the year's best thrillers and one of the most striking cinematic experiences of recent memory, tackling the themes of Catholic faith and interpersonal politics with precision and timelessness. The film follows the mass gathering of the Cardinals of the world following the unexpected death of the Pope, having to seclude themselves in the Vatican and elect a new Pope. Cardinal Lawrence is tasked with managing the covert during this time, although his investigations find him discovering several disturbing truths about those vying for the title of Pope.
While the concept allows the mass gathering and voting of 108 different cardinals, not every cardinal is given an extensive look or character development as the film progresses. However, the few cardinals who are focused upon are largely varied in their execution, each feeling distinctly different from one another and symbolizing difficulties and mentalities within the Catholic Church. Despite their quarrels and differences, each Cardinal's pivotal role in deciding who will become the next Pope places them on an increased pedestal of notoriety, with the drama and chaos that unfolds giving more insight into these all-holy figures.
Release Date October 25, 2024
Director Edward Berger
Runtime 120 Minutes
6 Goffredo Cardinal Tedesco
Played by Sergio Castellitto
Image via Focus Featues With all of the discourse and discussion between the bishops about the future and evolution of the Catholic Church under a new Pope, there always stands to be a stand-out cardinal who stands for the opposite, more regressive mentality. Goffredo Cardinal Tedesco, played by Sergio Castellitto, is an Italian Cardinal with much more traditionalist views for how the Church should be run, striving to return to a more conservative philosophy toward the world. He sees the mass expansion of the Church and cardinalship to other cultures and parts of the world as largely disappointing, becoming the leading choice for cardinals who share his traditionalist views.
Being a symbol for taking the church back to a more right-leaning leadership, Tedesco acts as an impending force that a wide variety of the other cardinals work together to stop, even emboldening far-from-perfect candidates to stop him from achieving power. Tedesco himself plays the role of the opposing force very well, being an ever-presence and growing power amidst the chaos and having his regressive mentality gain more traction as more infighting occurs. It becomes increasingly difficult for the more left-leaning cardinals to see their efforts increasingly being in vain as their choices for the Pope continue to come up short, while Tedesco stands to grow with each passing vote. Tedesco shows his true colors and the ugly truth of his views near the film's finale when he uses a shocking revelation and real-life event to embolden his efforts as definitive proof that he should be Pope and that the Church should be fighting a war against other religions.
5 Joshua Cardinal Adeyemi
Played by Lucian Msamati
Image via Focus Features One of the first major revelations when it comes to secrets and discourse within the conclave, Joshua Cardinal Adeyemi, played by Lucian Msamati, is a wildly popular Nigerian candidate with conservative social views who stood out as an early leader during the first few votes. Despite his more conservative views and stated homophobic views, the more liberal cardinals find themselves begrudgingly rallying around him as the better of two evils between him and Tedesco. However, this quickly changes after a surprising outburst between Adeyemi and a Nigerian nun, causing Lawrence to investigate further into the harsh truth of the situation.
Adeyemi makes for an interesting case in the context of Conclave as a whole, acting as simply one of the first dominoes in an ever-expanding investigation of all the corruption, infighting, and secrets amongst the cardinals. The revelation of his past with the nun serves a greater purpose than to destroy his chances at becoming Pope, but also the difficulties and pain that come from infighting and fragments of the past forever haunting us in the present. Even with all the unlikable aspects of his character, there is an undeniable sorrow and shame that comes when Lawrence tells him that he will not be Pope, with his tears being filled with emotion and making for a powerful shift in the film.
4 Joseph Cardinal Tremblay
Played by John Lithgow
Image via Focus Features One of the most prominent schemers and conniving tricksters in Conclave, the web of lies and deceit that Joesph Cardinal Tremblay, played by John Lithgow, creates leading up to the events of Conclave is staggering. From the very beginning, the Canadian moderate is under suspicion before voting even begins, as Lawrence receives word that during Tremblay's final meeting with The Pope before his death, Tremblay was apparently excommunicated from the Church. While this claim is largely unfounded for the majority of the film, the mystery surrounding the truth lingers throughout the film, putting his role as a frontrunner for Pope into question.
While Lawrence's investigation into Adeyemi acted as a slight extension of power from the Cardinal, the search for the true nature of Tremblay's character and past forces Lawrence to go well beyond his duties. While Tremblay positions himself as a well-meaning candidate and effective choice for Pope to cardinals on both sides, the truth is that he will do many dirty tactics in order to secure the power of the papacy. From directly requesting that the nun from Adeyemi be brought into the Vatican to directly bribing various cardinals for their votes, Tremblay shows that even with the greatest intentions, people are quick to commit heinous and unforgivable acts to accomplish them.
3 Aldo Cardinal Bellini
Played by Stanley Tucci
Image via Focus Features Played by Stanley Tucci, Aldo Cardinal Bellini is the initial perfect choice for Pope in the eyes of both Lawrence and the wide variety of well-meaning cardinals, being the American liberal candidate and striving to continue the good work of the previous Pope. More than any other Pope, Bellini is emphatic and dedicated, not particularly to his own chances as Pope, but making sure that Tedesco does not win, even giving support to less-than-ideal candidates to stop a Tedesco victory. While his ideals and vision for what the Pope should do and how they should act are largely sound and within reason, Bellini's own hubris and near-sighted goals for a progressive future can allow him to miss the full picture.
Being a direct friend and frequent confidant of Lawrence, Bellini gets much more screen time than the vast majority of other candidates for the papacy as the duo discuss the difficulties and drama of each candidate and outcome. Bellini has an interesting mentality for why he's in the race for the papacy in the first place, as he doesn't necessarily think of himself as the right choice, but also knows that he would do better than the other, more regressive candidates. It serves to give a larger understanding as to when he quickly gives up on his chances, giving the reigns to other, less-qualified candidates, even when he knows of their deception and deceit, for the greater good of the Catholic Church.
2 Thomas Cardinal Lawrence
Played by Ralph Fiennes
Image via Focus Features The leading character who acts as the perspective to which the audience gets to experience the unfolding chaos and drama of the conclave process, Thomas Cardinal Lawrence, played by Ralph Fiennes, is the Dean of the College of Cardinals. Being a British liberal, Lawrence has certain inherent biases that seem to not necessarily get in the way of his roles as the leader of the conclave, but certainly guide his decision-making for looking into deceit and mysteries. This combination of bias and the desire to find the truth leads Lawrence down a wild path, including even breaking the seals and rules of the Church to uncover the hidden truths of his fellow cardinals.
Through experiencing the events and increased knowledge of Conclave through the eyes and perspective of Lawrence, the film lends itself to allowing the audience to root for Lawrence in his quest for truth and discovery. While some of these decisions are certainly haste in their execution and don't always go over well, he has the best of intentions and makes sure to play his role of leadership to the best of his ability. With the increasing persecution and truth-revelation of the cardinals, Lawrence slowly sees himself climbing the ladder and becoming one of the only remaining cardinals who could stand up to and defeat Tedesco's rising coalition. Between all the drama and discourse that Lawrence finds himself at the center of, it all comes to challenge his own faith in his abilities to do the right thing and accomplish the job at hand, doubts that still linger by the end of the film.
1 Vincent Cardinal Benitez
Played by Carlos Diehz
Image via Focus Features One of the most unexpected wild card cardinals in the entire film, Vincent Cardinal Benitez, played by Carlos Diehz, quickly becomes the philosophical highlight of the film and the clear greatest choice for Pope. Initially, a little-known archbishop who was working from a secret Church in Afghanistan that was only known to the previous Pope, almost as if the Pope himself was giving one last twist even after death. Benitez's arrival at the Conclave comes as a shock to the cardinals, although they are forced to accept him into the Vatican after realizing the strange circumstances of his cardinalship. Benitez's different perspective and lack of experience with the drama and infighting of the Cardinals gives him a fresh perspective and allows him to adhere to the strengths and teachings of Catholicism even more than the Cardinals among him.
Benitez is a humble joy to watch on-screen from the very beginning of the film, whether it be the joy and appreciation that he has for even being a part of the voting process for continuously voting with his heart and for Lawrence, even despite knowing that he wasn't in contention to win. What elevates the character well beyond the other well-meaning cardinals is that, even when things are at their lowest and the Vatican is filled with pain, Benitez finds the strength within himself to call for peace and acceptance among all, having known firsthand what it's like to experience war and destruction. These aspects help make him the surprise last-second choice to become the new Pope, yet even after this, his secrets end up being revealed to Lawrence at the end of the film. Yet instead of all the previous secrets of the film being damning evidence against them, Benitez's secrets prove to even further amplify his strength and capabilities as a leader.
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