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The Two Popes - MR1

The Two Popes. The Two Popes is a cinematic masterpiece and is one of the few pieces of filmographic content that awards the audience with an experience that allows for introspection and understanding as opposed to numbing action and glittering generalities.

The film efficiently and effectively handles relevant and pertinent issues with enviable lucidity and poignance. Jonathan Pryce and Anthony Hopkins deliver stellar performances while ensuring that neither steps on the other’s toes. Anthony McCarten weaves a powerful and at times enigmatic web of conversations through his subtle and understated writing, he has truly created the maximum by doing the minimum, in that he carefully inserts silences and strategically places pauses, thereby allowing the audience to think and engage with the content at hand. Bryce Dessner plays to the strengths of the movie by adding little to no noticeable background music, the score is tasteful and precise carefully placed such that it does not detract from the visuals or dialogues. 

Jonathan Pryce is simply magnificent in the film. He masterfully portrays the confusion of a man who finds himself in the company of one of the most powerful religious leaders in the world. He tells us a tale filled with exuberance, repentance, and a sense of hope, and he never betrays the innate simplicity of the character he plays. 

Anthony Hopkins delivers yet another effortless performance. This time of an old man, who understands the shortcomings of his conservative beliefs but finds himself unable to break away from their shackles. He depicts the struggles he faces, his inability to ascertain what is right and wrong, all the while maintaining faith in a power that he believes will guide him to a better place. 

Overall, the film is one that calls the audience to ponder upon their beliefs and  question conventional and conservative ideas. It paints a picture that frames the power that religion has to inspire envy, engender spite and spawn lies. 

Rating: 9.1/10