THE TWO POPES

Release Date: Netflix Malaysia, 20 Dec 2019
Genre: Drama

Running Length: 2:05

Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce, Juan Minujín

Director: Fernando Meirelles

Screenplay: Anthony McCarten

Based on true events, THE TWO POPES imagines a meeting between Pope Benedict/Cardinal Ratzinger (Hopkins) and his future successor, Pope Francis/Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio (Pryce). Benedict is a conservative leader while Francis is more of a liberal and modern thinker; and one of Pope Benedict's harshest critics.

I was expecting this movie to be dry and talky-talky. Yes, it's talky-talky but it's absolutely not boring.

There are elements of faith in this movie but the filmmakers are more concerned with giving us an inside look on the political side of the church and a rare behind-the-scene peek into the process of voting for a Pope. 

Of course, the highlight to me was seeing the meeting of the two men of faith. The bulk of the film happens when Pope Benedict summons Bergoglio to visit him in Rome with the purpose of informing him of his resignation, and tries to convince him to be his successor. 

What really spoke to me was seeing Bergoglio trying to avoid his destiny to be the future world leader because he felt undeserving due to a crisis of conscience (he was scarred by a particular incident that happened to him when he was a young man, shown here in flashbacks).

The performances from both Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce are on point. You can see both their character's arc transform on screen throughout the course of the movie. The dialogue is sharp and peppered with just enough humour to make me see them as imperfect humans; one more close-minded than the other, but both equally passionate for God and compassionate for His people.  

What I also like is the unconventional cinematography and editing choice the filmmakers made to keep this film moving along swiftly. The decision to use the shaky cam approach for some scenes were distracting at first, but overtime, it did successfully gave us the audience, a more intimate and almost voyeuristic view into the conversations of these two godly men.  

This is such a fascinating movie as it demystifies these divine men as mere mortals, and surprisingly, it made me reflect my relationship with God and who I am as a human being.  

RATING: 8.5/10