---
title: "Conclave: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/conclave/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/conclave"
critics_score: 79
critics_reviews: 18
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Conclave (2024): what the critics said

Critics' score 79 from 18 reviews: 14 positive, 4 mixed, 0 negative.

Most critics agree Conclave is an entertaining Vatican potboiler, and nearly all of them put Ralph Fiennes at the centre of the praise: his restrained, doubt-ridden Cardinal Lawrence is named again and again as the film’s chief asset. The ensemble comes next, with Stanley Tucci and Isabella Rossellini singled out, then Edward Berger’s direction, Peter Straughan’s script and the production design and cinematography, which several reviews credit with making narrow hallways tense. The spread is narrow. Fourteen of eighteen reviews are positive and none is negative.

Reservations cluster around the plot rather than the craft: the mixed notices call the mystery thin and the twists cheap, and more than one finds the ending clunky or over-sensational. The Los Angeles Times is the most pointed, calling it a silly mystery with no new insight, and The Skinny predicts it will slip from memory quickly. Even those critics enjoy the two hours.

## The Guardian — Wendy Ide

Rating 5/5. 1 December 2024. 

Fiennes gives one of the performances of the year as the cardinal overseeing the papal election, internalising anguish and doubt in a restrained yet compelling turn. Berger's elegant direction and the film's exploration of power struggles and ritual make it gripping and universally resonant.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2024/dec/01/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-is-almighty-in-thrilling-papal-tussle-edward-berger-robert-harris-isabella-rossellini-5-stars)

## Evening Standard — Nick Howells

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 28 November 2024. 

The critic finds Edward Berger's papal succession thriller a mesmerising and visually striking film that improves on the director's previous work. Ralph Fiennes delivers a hypnotically towering, Oscar-worthy performance as the conflicted Cardinal Lawrence amid the scheming cardinals.

[Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-oscar-b1186405.html)

## The Hollywood Reporter — Stephen Farber

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 31 August 2024. Festival review. 

The critic praises Ralph Fiennes' career-best performance as the dean overseeing the papal election and Berger's versatile direction of this gripping Vatican-set drama adapted from Robert Harris's novel. It highlights the expert ensemble and the film's exploration of power, doubt, and timely issues within the Church.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-edward-berger-1235988528/)

## Variety — Peter Debruge

Rating Critics Pick. 30 August 2024. Festival review. 

The critic calls it a thinking man’s thriller with satisfying twists that respects the audience and offers insights into the church. The strong cast led by Ralph Fiennes and the depiction of Vatican ritual and power struggles are singled out for praise.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2024/film/reviews/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-1236125537/)

## Vulture — Bilge Ebiri

Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 13 December 2024. Festival review. 

The film is sinfully entertaining, blending the pulp velocity of an airport read with high drama in its depiction of the secretive papal conclave process. Berger expertly builds tension through shifting alliances, ritual, and unexpected twists while showcasing strong performances from Fiennes and the ensemble.

[Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/review-conclave-is-sinfully-entertaining.html)

## Radio Times — James Mottram

Rating 4/5. 25 November 2024. 

Berger’s Conclave is a refined work that utilises all of its various talents in a robustly scripted papal thriller. It singles out the exquisite production design and the focus on power, corruption and the role of women in the Church.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-imperious/)

## Sight and Sound

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2024. Festival review. 

The film is an engrossing ecclesiastical hoot that compresses meaty intrigue into two brisk hours through strong ensemble performances. It singles out the mordant wit and the standout turn from Stanley Tucci for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/conclave-hunt-new-pope-begins-edward-bergers-ecclesiastical-hoot)

## The i Paper — Christina Newland

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 29 November 2024. 

The review praises the film as a gossipy, thrilling and deliriously fun political thriller full of catty backstabbing that makes Succession look tame. Berger's faithful adaptation and Peter Straughan's witty script deliver compelling insight into the Vatican's old-school workings alongside strong performances from Fiennes, Tucci and Rossellini.

[Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/ralph-fiennes-stanley-tucci-thrilling-catholic-catfight-conclave-3400954)

## Time Out — Phil de Semlyen

Rating 4/5. 22 November 2024. 

Conclave is a supremely entertaining Vatican potboiler with schemes and twists that play out like a 1970s conspiracy thriller. It singles out Ralph Fiennes's immaculate, magisterial performance for particular praise.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/conclave-review-2024)

## Empire — Siddhant Adlakha

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 22 November 2024. 

Berger's follow-up is described as a slickly enjoyable papal popcorn piece that balances pulpy thrills with pensive themes about faith and institutions. The critic highlights the precise clockwork screenplay, claustrophobic tension, and standout performances, especially Isabella Rossellini as a quiet but commanding presence.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/conclave/)

## Los Angeles Times — Katie Walsh

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 24 October 2024. 

The critic describes the film as a handsomely rendered, meticulously acted twisty papal potboiler full of backroom skulduggery but ultimately a thin and silly mystery with cheap twists. The rich filmmaking and performances are praised, while the lack of new insights is noted as a complaint.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2024-10-24/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-john-lithgow-stanley-tucci-vatican)

## The Telegraph

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 29 November 2024. 

Fiennes is the best thing in the film as the pragmatic cardinal organising the election amid rival factions; the brisk thriller is enjoyable but ultimately leaves little depth once the white smoke clears.

[Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-edward-berger/)

## Financial Times — Danny Leigh

Rating ★★★★☆. 28 November 2024. 

Fiennes delivers a crackerjack performance in this expertly juicy drama of Vatican intrigue, guilt and doubt; Berger turns the page-turner source into a wry, sturdy old-school thriller focused on backstairs whispers and moral questions.

[Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/460e986f-8d09-4500-abcb-d296d166e54a)

## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis

Rating Critic’s Pick. 24 October 2024. 

The critic finds the film a sly, sleek election potboiler about selecting a new pope that is entertaining but ultimately unpersuasive in its ambitions. Strong performances, particularly Ralph Fiennes, and the Vatican intrigue are singled out for praise.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/24/movies/conclave-review.html)

## HeyUGuys — Linda Marric

Rating 5/5. 29 November 2024. 

The film is a masterful blend of mystery, political intrigue, and character drama, anchored by Ralph Fiennes' tour-de-force performance as Cardinal Lawrence. Berger's direction brings cinematic gravitas and exquisite visuals to the secretive Vatican world, with a sharp script that balances theological themes and human ambition, delivering shocking yet satisfying twists.

[Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/conclave-review/)

## Collider — Jason Gorber

Rating 9/10. 10 September 2024. 

Edward Berger’s Conclave is a remarkably well-shot and written portrait of a struggle for power with great performances across the board. The critic singles out Ralph Fiennes' career-highlight performance and the cinematography for making even narrow hallways thrilling.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/conclave-movie-review/)

## NME — James Mottram

Rating 4/5. 28 November 2024. 

The critic finds it a highly satisfying drama-thriller about the papal election, with absorbing performances, dialogue and design that make the ritual compelling despite the subject matter. It works as both a finely-tuned thriller and a meditation on the Church’s place in society today.

[Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/conclave-review-pope-ralph-fiennes-stanley-tucci-3815998)

## /Film — Witney Seibold

Rating 7.5/10. 23 October 2024. 

Berger's film is a tightly wound bureaucratic fantasy about an open-minded Catholic Church longing for progress, presented as a mature political thriller with shadowy conspiracies among cardinals. It features a great script, strong performances, and meticulous visuals of Vatican traditions, though the ending may strike some as clunky or sensational.

[Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/1693553/conclave-ralph-fiennes-movie-review/)

## The Wrap

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 22 October 2024. 

The critic finds the film a surprisingly pulpy Vatican thriller that works well as an absorbing locked-room mystery with riveting performances, especially from Ralph Fiennes, but falters when it reaches for deeper significance and stumbles on its conclusion.

[Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/conclave-review-ralph-fiennes-edward-berger/)

## The Skinny — Jamie Dunn

Rating 3/5. 25 November 2024. 

The critic calls it a handsome and thoroughly entertaining papal potboiler with fun performances, a moody score and beautiful compositions, but notes the thin cloak-and-dagger plot and that it will disappear from memory quickly. The daft but humanistic ending is singled out as memorable.

[Read the review](https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/new-releases/conclave)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/conclave.md