Cardinal Sins: “Conclave” Star Isabella Rossellini and Director Edward Berger on Their Thrilling New Film

Hot off Audience Award wins at both the Mill Valley and Middleburg Film Festivals, the film Conclave enjoyed phenomenal word of mouth on its way into theaters on October 25. Based on Robert Harris’ bestselling 2016 thriller, Conclave goes behind the sequestered doors of the Vatican to show the inner workings of selecting a new pope. 

The story follows Cardinal Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes), who must run the conclave after his beloved friend, the current pope, dies unexpectedly. While acting in a managerial capacity, he is also working to get Bellini (Stanley Tucci), a more progressive cardinal, nominated as pope, all while undergoing a crisis of faith. Other cardinals are vying for the job, but intrigue and surprises come into play, including the unannounced arrival of Benitez (Carlos Diehz), a cardinal whose appointment the pope kept secret from nearly everyone. Throughout the entire process, Sister Agnes (Isabella Rossellini) is in charge of the hundreds of nuns tasked with keeping the cardinals well-fed and comfortable. She is meant to be seen and not heard, but for reasons that become clear, staying silent is impossible for her.

The visually sumptuous, exciting, and tense film is courtesy of Oscar-winning director Edward Berger (All Quiet on the Western Front) and Oscar-nominated screenwriter Peter Straughan (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy). Not only is the film on many shortlists for the Best Picture Oscar, but so, too, are the performances from Ralph Fiennes and Stanley Tucci for Best Actor and Supporting Actor categories. 

The Credits spoke to Edward Berger and Isabella Rossellini about their experience working on this fascinating tale of religious and political intrigue.  

Isabella, Sister Agnes is expected to stay silent but is also very direct when she does speak. How did you go about building her as a character?

Isabella Rossellini: I went to a school run by nuns, and my nuns were a great inspiration. Of course it was written in the script, the way the nuns were, it’s not that I created anything, but I could identify or recognize it. The nuns at my school had a lot of authority and they weren’t coy. They are always man to man—so to speak. I remember they were very direct but also very respectful, and so when I played Sister Agnes, I thought of them and was very glad to have had that experience, so I didn’t hesitate. I knew them well.

There’s certainly a hierarchy at play, and it’s quite a contrast between them and the Cardinals. This is reflected in how Edward filmed them. 

Rossellini: As an actor, I am just playing the role as written, and the nuns are everywhere the men are, but the genius was in how Ed covered it. One day, I saw how he was covering crowd movement. As actors, we are just moving from one place to another, but the camera was very high, and he had the nuns coming in, running like a school of fish or little ducklings in a row, just headed towards a destination, running in and out of the frame. They are not to disturb the men but just do their duty. The men, instead, were talking and interacting and taking up a lot of space. So you could tell what the hierarchy was through those images. Yes, we speak, and there is dialogue, but so much is said through images. Even while watching the film, I noticed that the nuns are always in the background, and sometimes they are just in shadow. There may be very little dialogue, but you always see them. They are there. That’s the director. 

Isabella, in the scene where you speak up, how did you leverage the environment to capture Sister Agnes’s experience? 

Rossellini: First of all, I was nervous. It was a room full of men, and I was the only woman in it. There were scenes with many nuns, but most didn’t speak Italian or English, so I felt very intimidated. I thought Sister Agnes would feel the same, so I used it for the scene. I could use that even though my heart was beating very fast; I had to steady myself and just be dignified. 

Edward Berger: I remember hearing your heart in my ears. 

Rossellini: I knew it would be good and would help if I was trembling and had a real fear of doing takes in front of so many men and all the technicians. It fit the character, so I was able to use it. 

Edward, your films often explore the themes of doubt and liberation. How is that shown in Conclave, and how does having Ralph Fiennes as Cardinal Lawrence contribute to the story?  

Berger: Well, Ralph’s character is basically based in doubt. He says at some point, “I have difficulty with prayer.” Just imagine. That’s like me saying I have difficulty believing in the power of the camera I’m using, or a writer saying, “I don’t believe my words anymore”. The central part of your being is taken away. He is on unsure ground and doesn’t know if he should be there. He’s lost. As a cardinal, that means you’ve had 20 promotions. You have a very powerful top job in the church. You’re a top Catholic. With that promotion comes responsibility, but sometimes that means losing the origin of why you made it. There are so many film CEOs who say they want to go back to producing. That’s Cardinal Lawrence. He yearns for the purity of his faith, but he meets that in another cardinal and recognizes that purity in Cardinal Benitez, but he is living in doubt. That’s why I needed an actor who could show what he was thinking, and with Ralph, you could see behind his eyes. It’s magical. You put the camera on him, understand exactly what he’s thinking, and follow each thought as if it were dialogue, but he doesn’t say anything. 

And are there ways in which you bring in the idea of liberation or the hope of liberation in Conclave?

Berger: The architecture is one example of that. With the Casa Santa Marta, it is almost like a jail. That’s what we’re trying to equate it to, and when the doors close, and all you hear is the hum of the fluorescent light and Ralph’s breath. It’s really silent, with no air or light coming in. I wanted everything to feel shut in and oppressive and claustrophobic. It’s called ‘The Sequester.’ They’re not to have contact, so it must be lonely. Then, at the end, when the conclave is over, there’s a moment when the shutters rise, and Ralph goes to the window and opens it, and lets the air in. He hears female laughter, and he lets the light and the future in. Ideally, because you’ve lived through this oppression and darkness with Ralph, you, too, feel that relief and liberation of breathing fresh air again. 

Rossellini: I think the film really is about doubt because it celebrates the mystery, which is what religion is about. I’m not a very religious person, but I did go to a nun school. I think this, in its own way, is a very religious film. I’m interested in how people will react to it because it accepts doubt and lives in the mystery. That’s really the basis of faith. 

Conclave is in theaters nationwide. 

Featured image: (L to R) Actor Isabella Rossellini and director Edward Berger on the set of CONCLAVE, a Focus Features release. Credit: Philippe Antonello/Focus Features. ©2024 All Rights Reserved.