Yahoo Movies Ralph Fiennes tipped for Oscar for 'hypnotically towering' Conclave performance
The actor portrays a Cardinal at the heart of the Vatican's vote for a new Pope in the Robert Harris adaptation
Conclave had a star-studded premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on Thursday, 10 October, and is one of the events big headline galas.
The drama has led to early awards buzz for its lead Ralph Fiennes, who plays Cardinal Lawrence a man at the heart of the Vatican's choosing of a new successor after the Pope dies. Based on Robert Harris' book of the same name, Conclave if full of surprises and betrayals brought to stunning life by All Quiet on the Western Front director Edward Berger.
Read more: The most exciting films at the BFI London Film Festival 2024
Fiennes dressed to the nines as he stepped out for the film's premiere alongside his co-stars Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini. The film received impressive reviews after its premiere, with several pointing to Oscars glory for Fiennes.
The Evening Standard's Nick Howells was particularly impressed by The English Patient star's performance, writing that he delivers a "hypnotically towering performance" and that it is almost certain to be his "long-awaited Oscar moment."
The critic wrote: "If he does win the Oscar, it will rightly be for probably his best role yet. When the camera closes in on his reddened eyes to reveal a thousand-mile-deep sea of anguish and dilemma, it feels like the finest acting on the planet right now."
Howells wrote that Berger "has followed up (and bettered) All Quiet on the Western Front with this mesmerising, slow-motion papal smackdown", commending aspects of the film like its intense story, its cinematography, and supporting cast.
The Telegraph's Tim Robey felt similarly about Fiennes, describing the actor as "the best thing in this film" and writing: "He’s buttoned down without looking fit to burst. Pained. Grey. Tasked with organising the election, he listens intently, weighing each nugget of intel. A cautious pragmatist, he’s Rome’s present-day answer to Thomas Cromwell in Wolf Hall, only with less personal ambition."
Robey wasn't as impressed by the movie itself though, writing: "Conclave is briskly enjoyable, but once you’ve wafted the white smoke away, it leaves you with frustratingly little to chew on."
For The Hollywood Reporter's Stephen Faber the film demonstrated "Berger’s versatility" as a filmmaker because he "does a fine job controlling all of these performances, and he also creates a rich atmosphere for the production."
Faber remarked that the film "also offers one of the best roles of his career to Ralph Fiennes", adding: "Fiennes gives a superb performance as a man beginning to have doubts about his faith as a result of all these scandals, and when he emerges as a top contender to be named pope, his crisis of conscience intensifies.
"We can see that he may be the most qualified candidate, partly as a result of these thoughtfully articulated doubts, but he may not have the stomach for the job."
Conclave premieres on Friday, 29 November in UK cinemas.
