We Have a Pope falls short of potential

Faith is a very personal matter, yet many religious institutions seem impenetrable and devoid of humanity. Very rarely does a religious figure’s personality shine past the responsibilities they hold — especially if that person happens to be the pope.

A large part of the brilliance of We Have a Pope comes from the questioning of that idea. With the film, Italian writer, director and actor Nanni Moretti takes on an audacious premise concerning Catholicism’s most venerable authority. Thankfully, he also decides to make it a quirky character study rather than a high-stakes, melodramatic take on the subject.

The film opens in the Vatican, as the College of Cardinals prepares to hold a papal conclave to elect the new pope. The media — and the cardinals — are busy weighing the odds and guessing who will head the church. After the first few rounds of decision-making produce no results, the cardinals choose an unlikely candidate: the quiet Cardinal Melville (Michel Piccoli). But when it comes time to introduce him to the waiting faithful, the new pope panics and runs away.

It’s a powerful opening, and one that shows off the film’s two great strengths: its brilliant direction and odd sense of humor. In the middle of grand processions and serious voting, the film depicts cardinals awkwardly apologizing as they stumble or gamely try to keep track of the vote count for the papacy.

Cleverly, at the same time the cardinals outwardly flash impish smiles during the voting process, Moretti saturates the conclave hall with the projected inner thoughts of the various cardinals, which show them all worried or deep in prayer. The noise accumulates until it’s one loud cacophony, then suddenly cuts back to a quiet room.

And during Melville’s first breakdown, Moretti pulls the camera back slowly, leaving the otherwise grand figure of the pope merely as a small figure in an ornate Vatican meeting chamber. Moretti fills the film with moments like these, and each one is more fascinating than the last.

Part of why and how this works so well is because of the actors involved. Piccoli is perfect as Melville, playing the newly elected pope as saintly and kind but overwhelmed by the role that has been put upon him. The moments when stress gets to him and he snaps are constantly surprising and show that Piccoli’s acting range is far greater than just playing a sweet old man.

The other pillar to the film is the psychoanalyst (played by Moretti) brought in to help the pope. Witty, arrogant, unrestained and far more energetic than the clergy, the doctor soon finds himself forced to stay in the Vatican, as the conclave is still technically in effect. There, the manic doctor has to find a way to stay sane.

We Have a Pope combines all its good elements for the psychoanalyst’s big meeting with the pope himself. Moretti and Piccoli play off each other very well, and the scene is hilarious, as the interview is forced to take place in front of all the attentive and fidgety cardinals.

Sadly, this is their only scene together, and it feels like a missed opportunity as the film moves in a different direction — and takes a tumble. Piccoli and Moretti are extremely talented in their roles, and the supporting cast is strong, but the interesting premise at the start of the film gives way to more drawn-out elements and little in the way of plot progression. And even humorously crazed actors producing a Chekhov play and slow-motion scenes of the cardinals playing volleyball — another one of the film’s quirky, funny moments — can’t make up for that fumble.

By the time the third act is well underway, it just feels like Moretti is scrambling for a way to resolve the film’s story. We Have a Pope’s resolution, though once again supremely staged and shot, feels awkward and rushed. It’s an odd and underwhelming end to an otherwise enticing film.

In the end, We Have a Pope falls short of its potential. The film is an offbeat and whimsical look at a serious subject, and Moretti’s approach to the Vatican and its members is fascinating. But the problem isn’t Moretti’s direction or the actors’ performances — it’s the plot. And as hard as the cast and crew have tried, they can’t overcome that shortcoming.