S4E13.5: Conclave

I actually really like the implication that Adeyemi, after being confronted by Lawrence and told that he will not be Pope, but still being treated with compassion and fairness by him, switches his vote to Lawrence rather than someone he would be more politically aligned with like Tedesco, because through his actions Lawrence showed that he was a just and fair man of principle, which won him Adeyemi's genuine respect. It demonstrates that Adeyemi, while being a flawed, bigoted, and corrupt man, is still a true believer in the Church and its principles, and has some somewhat redeeming integrity that would lead him to choose the person he actually thinks most deserves to be Pope.

Several re-watches later, I will say it kind of IS a murder mystery. Like Bellini said, he was hounded and stressed to death, and we find out who did the stressing and the hounding and the betraying Also after reading the book: it's a good extra to read and get an idea of what was cut and which characters were changed/compbined, but honestly the movie is better. The only thing I wish they hadnt changed was Vincent's "health concerns" being injuries from a car bomb, which makes the whole end of the movie tie together even better imo. That and Bellini's woke pro female ordination theologian friends

I keep relistening to this episode trying to relieve the high of experiencing this movie for the first time. I love it so much.

Considering the Stanley tucci cooking chat, y'all should check out Big Night, which also features Isabella Rosellini

Whatever you do do not take Stanley Tucci’s advice on how to make a Negroni

Just a note to say thank you for this lovely and necessary work.

One of the first times I had to pause the podcast and go watch the movie for myself

Being Pope is the glass canon build, 10/10 powerful but also very vulnerable to cardinals. This is partially balanced by them only being able to move diagonally but Popes can go straight as well.

I don't see Six-String Samurai suggested as a future possible title anywhere, so here goes. It's from 98, and the sountrack is quite the banger. And it has features.

Completely unrelated but please do The Accountant as a bonus! There's a lot to talk about there... A LOT.

I realize how much I'll sound like "guy who just yesterday rewatched Porco Rosso" by saying this, but this films approach to femininity is quite similar to Porco Rosso. What is it about Italian chauvinism that sees women filling in all necessary background roles to the indifference or active disdain of the plot-centric men? Would love to hear y'all's take on Ghibli in general some time.

Can a British Native explain to a poor British immigrant the "crisps and potato snacks" things?

I held off on this episode because Conclave was 100% one of the movies I wanted to see but held off because I failed to ever get everything right to see it. I managed to this Sunday and hell yeah it was a solid 10/10 movie. and I want to see, and I don't know if anyone has said anything about it yet: but funny that Aby jokes about transvestigating the Pope because the sickos are absolutely transvestigating the new Pope

Unrelated to anything else in the episode but I fully misheard "go on peace" as "go and piss"

I think i am one of those forgotten names, bc I thought it was $20 and above 😅

I don't contribute £15 or above just to hear my name in the jazz outro, but I am one of the people Patreon has conspired against to keep off the list

As a yank, I never took Latin in school or college, and was really hoping to find the cold open translated in these comments.

In the U.S. some states have enacted laws which call for priests to divulge any confessions to child endangerment. Of course the Archdiocese of each state has threatened to excommunicate anyone who follows suit. This has lead to a lot of debate centering around separation of church and state. To me allowing for school prayer crossed that line decades ago, so whatevs

is Name of the Rose and Conclave the same movie ?

Some thoughts on Benitez's speech. I think in an actual conclave the Gang's points would be valid. But because of how the speech is framed and acted, a lot of the emphasis is on what's not said. "What do you know of war?" is a loaded opening, similar to his candle blow out earlier in the movie. It exposes how sheltered they've been. IIRC, Benitez's the only one who isn't in some way injured or shaken visibly. He's fine. He's been through this. For the fiction of the movie, I think that fits far more than a thesis on Revolutionary Catholicism. But I would also like to see Benitez verbally dissect Todesco's fascism in full. But the deflation of that quote in mention in the huffing and puffing Cardinal is so satisfying. Also brief aside, if I was Pope, I'd shorten my normal name from Marcas (spelled that way) to Mark.

i watched conclave and wrote down my own thoughts in anticipation of this. im so excited

If I was going to be Pope, I'd pick the name Joseph, because I'd have plausible deniability that I'm naming myself after the guy with the amazing technicolor dreamcoat, or maybe Jesus's stepdad, instead of the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. THAT'S RIGHT, POPE STALIN HERE WE COME!!

What I wouldn't give to listen to you all talk about the Young Pope/New Pope series!

My pope name would be Testaclese and my first act would be to declare ex cathedra that race and gender are social constructs, that all are equal before the eyes of the lord and as such anyone cam be priest or nun, pope included

May I humbly request "The Master and Margerita (2024)" for religion season? It's another Russian movie about religion and making art under adverse conditions. It also fucks hard

I'm conflicted about the twist at the end tbh. The way it is portrayed it feels a lot like the way that trans allies talk about intersex people as if we are a gotcha for debating "only two genders" transphobes instead of being real people. The statement against operating on intersex people "just because" is nice but also it does kinda whitewash the history of christian hospitals being really enthusiastic about operating on intersex kids.

I stopped the podcast about 5 minutes in to watch this film and I'm so glad I did. What super movie! Finished the 'cast too now and you got this one bang on. Thanks for putting me back in the list, Devon, sorry to make a fuss.

At the end of each round of voting, someone yells "load smoke!" and the robed papal tank crew shoves a shell into the breach

An alpaca using their hoof to nail a piece of parchment to a cathedral door, oblivious to Sir Keir stalking up behind them with a silenced Walther PPK

As a former altar server I appreciate the tone of the Religiously Inflected Cinema Sins Ding. Nicely done.

They gotta put a cardinal hat on one of the turtles and make the Turtle Pope from Elden Ring real. Is this dog?

I literally just rewatched this with Dr Eleanor Janega's commentary so this is the freshest a film has been in my mind, usually I (re)watch films after the podcast cos you've made me interested in it

Purple Pingers mentioned!!! I was NOT expecting this movie to be about being trans. The twist got me!

I'm a little behind on the podcast due to some personal stuff but I just wanted to pop into the comments to let you know that you have one less subscriber who identifies as cis since the last episode came out and I wanted to thank the podcast and the community for helping me to be more open with myself.

Saw this movie in the cinema with my mother (raised Catholic) and when Lawrence breaks the seal on the papal chambers she gasped so loudly that everyone in the cinema turned to look at her

Small point but I think the Pope did set up Cardinal Lithgow to get blamed for exposing Adeyemi. It was part of the 12D chess, make Lithgow think he was gaining an advantage by undermining his ability to win.

I've been spending too long in the magic books cause I understood that

of course the vaping cardinal had to be the picture, love it

The best part of Conclave was when he said "IT'S CONCLAVIN' TIME" and conclaved all over those guys

"You cannot... Break the seal of the confessional" WA state: You sure about that?

I watched Conclave when I saw this episode dropped because I wanted to see it anyway and now's as good a time as any, and I couldn't stop thinking about the Father Mark tiktok (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clk5DQesgcE)

The Sistine Chapel scenes were all filmed on a set, which was combined with digital mat paintings. Thanks Japanese TV network which funded the restoration in the late 70s and early 80s, there are amazing, high-quality images of every inch of the frescoes available, so it's a really easy space to duplicate if you have the money.

Loving your perspective on the movie and thrilled to see some solid Italian actors getting recognized but I'm grinding my teeth every time you mispronounce "papabile". It's "papAbile", or even better "papAbbile" for extra-Roman inflection.

It is interesting that Benitez’ arguably pro-trans position of accepting himself as God made him is still him deciding that it would be wrong to change the body that God gave him, which you can also read as very much anti-trans. I’ve seen many people use variations on that line of thought to argue against gender-affirming surgery, which Innocent getting the hysterectomy would arguably have been.

Oh white smoke from the Sistine Chapel, looks like KJB dropped a new episode.

it feels very strange listening to this at a time when the overwhelming reaction online to Pope Leo XIV is digging up his old, Bellini-esque tweets that suggest staunch opposition to the Tedescos of the world but little in the way of a coherent or compelling vision. Hope Leo proves himself as being more than just "not conservative"

I’m actually going to Rome next month, think I’ll miss the conclave though 🥲 (ps anyone had any luck getting Colosseum tickets? 🙏)

What a fucking intro

Because of recent Pope events, i came across a reddit thread regarding parts of the Conclave and the Phantom Menace were filmed in the same parts of the Vatican. https://www.reddit.com/r/interestingasfuck/comments/1kfbre5/a_scene_from_the_conclave_and_star_wars_shot_in/

Oh, I thought I was being left off the list because of some sort of unspecified crimes

I do love the idea of popes having a special, secret, teenagers-at-a-sleepover handshake 🤝 ✝️

MAD GOD by Phil Tippett. I know someone already mentioned it, but I'd love to see you all discuss it.

They actually filmed part of it in the Royal Palace of Caserta which is the Naboo palace from Phantom Menace. My autistic ass clocked the staircases in a nanosecond 😄

"Wubbies," eh?

LOVE Devon's "it is crucial" joke. That's good clean etymology humor to warm a linguist's heart

Did you upload the conclave review when you saw the white smoke or what?

As a generational atheist, I love Abigails disregard for religious hubbub so much 🤣 The pageantry, the bullshit. It means nothing to me, so to hear her respond similarly is wonderful 🤣

Pope American 😭

The fact that this came out the DAY they picked a new Pope is insane

She conk on my clave til my smoke turns white

American Pope 😣

new papal decree: no ketchup on hotdogs

So, despite having only one uni-level Latin course, and having learned all the rest from reading medieval English legal material, I'm mildly surprised at just how much of that intro I actually understood.

As I get ready to dive in, the white smoke has risen from St Peter's. I say ironically, America, fuck yeah!

Fire up the lathe again for other things

HOLY MOLEY THE TIMING

ding ding, chicago pope

LOL releasing the podcast immediately made them end the conclave.

You did this without Dr Eleanor Yanega!?!? 😭

I didn't have November's Maga/Reform turn on my bingo card.

Good timing

Once my dad said "Cheesus Christ" and I responded with "Queso Cristo" and I think it killed him.

(incredibly disappointed that the followup to Pope Francis is Pope Bob the American who dislikes LGBT+ and covered up sexual abuse)

Ken Russell’s the devils for religion season

two for two with the lathe, putting more manifestation of the Season of the American President Under Fire

I'm going to guess they didn't pick Luigi Mangioni, did they pick the guy whose last name was Pizza something?

You timed thus one disturbingly well

can confirm, the tucci brand cookware is pretty nice.

THEEE day the new pope is elected. stunning timing ladies and Devon

Literally as the smoke started!

This might be the first podcast episode released in the new papacy.

Listening and off the bat I'm surprised that none of the hosts seem as repulsed by this movie as I was imo it was a Sorkinesque libwashing of a deeply conservative institution? But extremely well made and acted

fucking perfect timing lads

What's the most important part of a good jotimingke

This is like Constantine seeing the cross in the sky. People have been made saints for less than this.

Literally got this notification less than five minutes after the white smoke showed up!

I have been waiting for this episode for a month.

Ready for the ravings of a mad woman? It's why I'm here!

New pope just dropped within SECONDS, your power

God bless

🤌🤌 the TIMING

Dropped *during the white smoke* is legendary timing

release the full latin cut

Was the timing on purpose? I'm so impressed

dropping this right as they elect a new pope is wild

It was nice of the College of Cardinals to pick a new Pope for this episode

Serendipitous timing

Perfect timing

Whoa I watched this like last week, what great timing

Lol, just in time for the real one to finish!

Insane timing

I can't believe this posted right as the white smoke happened

What timing (white smoke as of about 10 mins ago)