In a variety of rooms, gardens and religious and historical sites in and around Rome, two elderly men walk, talk, dispute and, eventually, unexpectedly, find common ground. As films go, it doesn’t exactly sound like blockbuster material. In fact, the director’s own son has described it, teasingly, as “two old men sitting and talking about religion”.
Yet The Two Popes, Fernando Meirelles’s fictionalised account of a meeting between Pope Benedict XVI (Sir Anthony Hopkins), towards the end of his tenure, and the future Pope Francis (Jonathan Pryce), is winning accolades wherever it is shown. Hollywood’s Bible, Variety, has described the film as a “literate, exceptionally accurate drama”. Its British counterpart, Empire, has praised its “great writing, smart discretion and late career-high performances”, and even the Daily Mail – not an organ generally known for its religious fervour – has chimed in, conceding that it is “way more entertaining than non-believers may anticipate”.
