The Two Popes

The advantage of this film is that even if no one is particularly interested in the subject, there is a pretty good chance that everyone will enjoy it. Why? Because Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Pryce could very well be explaining how to peel potatoes and their rendition would still make it an acting tour de force. Their Oscar nominations rank among the most well-deserved ones. The sentence that comes to mind, "it didn’t happen but could have," rings true in every scene. This film almost felt too short, which has not happened to me in quite some time and I consider it to be the biggest surprise of 2019. (02/02/2020)

I really liked the work of the cameraman and the performances of the two leads, but I find it hard to evaluate the film as a whole. I don’t have a very good opinion of the Catholic Church, and because I am democratic in this regard, I lump all the religious flocks together into one big, stinking pile. The popes did some serious soul-searching in the film, but I consider all totalitarian regimes essentially the same. If the Catholic Church ever came to power in Europe, it would not surpass the Nazi or Communist regime in terms of casualties simply because it would not have the technical means to do so. I’m convinced of that. All of these regimes burned inappropriate literature, got rid of people who had their own (meaning different) opinion, and built their network of informants. The film’s theme deserves a Boo! rating from me, its saving grace is the cinematography and the two gentlemen. (08/08/2020)

An outstanding conversational drama with a fantastic cast. Light on its feet, funny and touching. The popes are both nice people and, thanks to the excellently written dialogue, you get an exact idea of both of their viewpoints. The scenes with Anthony Hopkins having a Fanta and a pizza inside the Sistine Chapel and he and Pryce watching football and drinking beer are priceless. An unbelievably humane and positive movie. (09/06/2020)

In this pleasant conversational film, you will see the pope watching Inspector Rex and enjoying a slice of pizza. Meirelles wins viewers over with his depiction of the pope as a man who also needs to confess and who may also have doubts about his mission. The friendship that is gradually established between these two priests, who are incompatible from the start, becomes the film’s main storyline. Both of the lead roles are very well cast. Hopkins portrays the German radical with his typical gusto and Jonathan Pryce’s naturalness is absolutely sufficient for playing his gentler opposite. (01/08/2020)

I liked the way it was filmed, acted, voiced, performed. I don't care that it's a movie about Catholic bigwigs. Overall, I don't even think the film had aspirations to be a faithful historical reproduction. I think it wanted to show two gentlemen getting on in years and becoming friends, even though they root for different teams. The fact that they both tried out for the papal chair is simply taking advantage of the alluring setting. An enjoyable film, it flows very nicely; the two hours passed like a breeze. I just walked away satisfied, absolutely not wanting to think about everything the Pope symbolizes, how much that circus costs to maintain, what all he's covered up. For me, it's a nice film with no critical overlap. (01/25/2020)