Metacritic reviews

A gradually swelling, deeply intellectual, and unexpectedly fun political thriller, Berger’s twisty film takes the audience behind the notoriously secretive closed doors of the Catholic Church for one of its most private processes: the election of a new pontiff.

Conclave is packed with unexpected twists and its final reveal is one viewers will never see coming, an increasingly rare occurrence in modern movie-making and the mark of an impeccably crafted thriller.

Conclave is one of those rare films that respects the audience’s attention, even as it sneaks a few tricks behind their backs.

Berger does a fine job controlling all of these performances, and he also creates a rich atmosphere for the production.

Berger’s latest is a blast of brilliance, with a supremely compelling story driven by some astonishing performances.

Like any good page-turner, Conclave is full of twists. Some you’ll see coming, and others will genuinely shock you. But this is smart, fiery melodrama.

Conclave whips itself up into high melodrama and then cuts through all the sturm und drang with sudden darts of humor. It’s a carefully calibrated thing, touching fingers with prestige greatness while keeping its feet firmly planted in the realm of rollicking entertainment.

Conclave is far too entertaining to dismiss in a puff of white smoke, even if the film might be a bit too convinced of its own dramatic import.

More airport paperback than theological treatise, Conclave is undeniably silly throughout, but its last-second reveals choreograph the sensibility too openly, undercutting much of what was masterfully unfurled up until that point.

Fine performances abound, including from Stanley Tucci and John Lithgow, but the film is ultimately at odds with itself, its handsome appearance and severe attitude clashing with its pulpy impulses.