A procedural thriller set in the papal conclave, a surreal horror-comedy political satire, and the trilogy closer for a comic book antihero saga – here are some brief thoughts on a few of the films that opened at theaters this past weekend.
Conclave – dir. Edward Berger
Conclave is the latest from director Edward Berger, following up 2022’s multiple Academy Award-winning German language war epic All Quiet on the Western Front. The PG-rated Conclave is a more approachable film, a mostly English-language dramatized procedural centered around the fascinating – and inextricably political – process of instilling a new Pope.
Ralph Fiennes stars as Cardinal Lawrence, the Cardinal-Dean who, upon the passing of the last pope, finds himself organizing and running the papal conclave – that is, the election process for a successor.
The film is both a fascinating look at the conclave process, and a compelling political thriller told within that construct. As a handful of candidates emerge with differing worldviews ranging from progressive to traditionalist to downright racist (among them Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Sergio Castellitto), Lawrence not only oversees the process but investigates the candidates and their pasts. As the Cardinal Dean, Lawrence is himself a potential candidate for the papacy – perhaps even a natural front-runner – but has removed himself from the conversation. He’s not interested, and secretly struggling with a crisis of his own faith.
We also learn that in his life the former pope had some wily insights and actions with which he set the stage for his succession, including secretly appointing the Archbishop of Kabul (Carlos Diehz) as a Cardinal, shifting the balance of power within the College, and refusing Lawrence’s request to be released from service – probably because he foresaw that Lawrence was best suited to lead the Conclave.
I really loved this film, and found both wisdom and hope in its analysis of faith and tradition. Lawrence stresses the humanity of the papacy in a speech to his colleagues: Doubt is the prerequisite of faith, and sin the prerequisite of forgiveness. Therefore they should elect someone who doubts, and finds his faith; someone who sins, and asks for forgiveness.
Venom: The Last Dance – dir. Kelly Marcel
When Venom was initially developed as a feature film, I was pessimistic of the idea of it being retooled as a superhero movie, especially divorced from the character’s classic origin story which is inextricably linked to Spider-Man. But Venom managed to be more amusing – and a bigger hit – than I anticipated, while its sequel Let There Be Carnage was gloriously nutty, fully winning me over as a fan, actively enthusiastic for a third film.
The franchise’s progression seems to have distilled, somewhat surprisingly, from its original filmmaking by committee into a more personal territory. Kelly Marcel directs this series closer (the previous entries were directed by Ruben Fleischer and Andy Serkis, respectively). Her name may not be familiar, but she is the only writer credited on all three films, with star Tom Hardy stepping in as collaborator on the last two. The pair have emerged as the architects of what has become the Venom trilogy.
After the events of Let There Be Carnage and a brief multiversal foray into the MCU (as a cameo appearance in Spider-Man: Homecoming), Eddie Brock and his gooey sentient alien symbiote Venom return home to find they’re fugitives, on the run from the police as well as a shadowy arm of the government, as suspects for Carnage’s crimes.
Essentially a road movie, the pair set out to evade their captors but don’t make it far. They’re also being pursued by huge insectoid alien monsters from Venom’s homeworld, and eventually latch onto how their tracking works: the aliens can only recognize Venom when the pair are bonded in their combined form. It’s an interesting mechanic that forces the duo to work together, while avoiding “suiting up”: Eddie vulnerable in his human form, and Venom acting as appendages. Whenever they do combine into Venom’s symbiotic form, the aliens are immediately back on their trail.
Parents may want to take note – thanks to a difficult-to-describe but cool-to-watch mechanism by which the aliens chew up their victims and expel their slurried remains into the air, the film is arguably the most gruesome of the series with occasional fountains of gore.
While not as pure unadulterated fun as the last film, The Last Dance maintains the series’ zaniness and humor, while also slowing down to weave in some poignant beats that show how these characters have grown. Eddie and Venom, previously a circumstantial odd-couple, have settled into a genuine friendship. But Eddie wonders about whether he’s missing out on love and family life, and Venom, previously more of an anti-hero, has developed a complex sort of humanity, demonstrating selflessness, empathy, and love.
Rumours – dirs. Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, & Guy Maddin
Rumours is the latest from Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson, and Guy Maddin, the trio behind The Green Fog. The framework is a political satire following a meeting of the G7 leaders at the garden of a secluded estate in Dankerode, Germany, to discuss international affairs. The film has a small but impressive cast including some amazing talents including Cate Blanchett, Alicia Vikander, and Charles Dance as an American president (making no effort whatsoever to mask his English accent).
As the evening goes on and darkness settles in, the seven world leaders realize they’re not only quite alone but eerily isolated – the staff have disappeared and their phones aren’t working. It becomes apparent that things aren’t quite right, and they group gets a distinct sense that the world may be undergoing some crisis or apocalypse while its leaders are sequestered away.
At this point the film veers into survival horror as the group try to make their way back to society, encountering weird phenomena that confirm that they are not safe, and strange things are indeed afoot.
A surreal political comedy with elements of horror? With its clever premise, excellent cast, and proven filmmakers, this movie should be a slam dunk, yet falls far short. As a political satire, it’s not especially insightful nor funny, its gags invoking many a wry smirk but rarely a laugh. And most criminally for a movie that features masturbating zombies, it drags.
I imagine there are some viewers for whom this will hit them right on a particular wavelength where’ they’ll pick up what it’s vibing, but it definitely wasn’t for me – despite a strong start, as it wore on I found it increasingly tiresome.
A/V Out
Conclave, Venom: The Last Dance, and Rumours are all now showing in theaters.
