After its brief, limited theatrical run, "The Two Popes" starts streaming Friday on Netflix.
WHAT IT'S ABOUT: Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (Jonathan Pryce), the future Pope Francis II, is summoned to the Vatican for a meeting with Pope Benedict XVI (Anthony Hopkins). It's 2012 and the cardinal, having trouble sensing where his humanist approach fits into the modern Catholic Church, is seeking permission to retire and serve as a simple parish priest. Over the course of an extended conversation that lasts several days, the longtime theological rivals become better acquainted with each other and Bergoglio learns the true reason the pope will not accept his departure from the church: his impending retirement.
MY SAY: "The Two Popes" belongs to the rich cinematic tradition of the two-hander, in which quiet conversations and subtle moments serve to elucidate the complex depths of the soul. That it pulls off what can be a difficult endeavor is only more impressive considering that the characters are a current and future pope at a moment of profound crisis, rather than friends at a cafe ("My Dinner with Andre") or romantic lovers ("Before Sunrise"). The stakes in telling this story could not be higher.
