Conclave
"I am what God made me."
Again, I wasn't going to leave an actual review but the movie has been rotting in my brain for the last couple of days that I had to.
If you had brain cells and basic media literacy, Conclave could be considered a good representation. The line he said at the end and the basic explanation of why it feels more like a sin to forcefully change who you truly are than to accept God's handiwork are, as strange as they might be, comforting words to people who seek God but the church doesn't seem to be doing a very good job at letting them seek him; a struggle at faith, basically.
I rewatched the movie for mostly the sole purpose of enjoying it again as much as I did the first time, but also to take in the cinematography shots that baffles me how it wasn't nominated to best cinematography in the Academy Awards. Furthermore, it was another movie that made use of language and its symbolisms. Watch the movie and rewatch it again: notice how the lights surround Benitez; how warm the lighting has always been around him and all throughout was going to be the light and hope of the church. How the light changes with whoever character Lawrence is talking to, just shows how much comfort and warmth the characters truly give him as a man whose faith has been on the edge for quite some time now.
Yes, Lawrence was chosen to lead the Conclave but that did not mean he was fit to become Pope. His becoming Pope would mean a last option for everyone who did not want Tedesco. But his constant doubts and going through files to seek the truth despite repeatedly saying they are sequestered is why the former Pope didn't want him to resign in the first place. While he did have the courage needed (which Bellini did not), his heart was not in it. However, his heart wasn't misplaced, and knew what exactly was the right thing to do. He didn't want to settle to just get it over with; he wanted to make it right. Needed to.
The auditorium scene where Tedesco and Benitez make their arguments could possibly be one of the reasons why this movie should have won Best Picture. The difference in how they deliver their speeches and arguments are wildly different and their use of language is not subtle. It is so important that Tedesco delivered the first half of his speech in Italian but then ended it in English, and how Benitez first gets their attention with English but moments later switches to Spanish. Tedesco, to put it roughly, was ambitious and rough. Benitez was gentle; he wasn't frustrated (although he may have been) or angry to start spouting out his views, instead, he took his stance and responded appropriately with what he truly believed was best for the people who had believed in the church and God. (Again, check the lighting for this one). I believe Benitez had something the other candidates didn't have, and this is a long shot but, acceptance. Acceptance of who they are, what they are, and how the world around them works now; having an understanding that progression shouldn't be feared but rather celebrated, that we aren't at war, that we wholeheartedly accept all differences because THAT is what it means to be Catholic; to having faith. The mere fact that he had included others and the sisters who made their meal in his prayer before eating meant a lot already.
One of my favorite parts of this movie is Lawrence's homily. Many would have argued that doubting God was a sin and something we shouldn't do. But I like how it was a big part of the film that he asks for a Pope who doubts, sins asks for forgiveness, and carries on. Without doubt, and if there was only certainty, there wouldn't be any mystery. Thus no need for faith.
There are too many lines in this movie that I love that I can't possibly include them here in my long-ass review, but I love this movie so much and it saddens me how it didn't win more awards.
Besides all the technical details, this was an enjoyable thriller and I should really read the book one of these days. This is the one who won Best Picture in my heart.