“No cardinal is a saint”

In the ’90s he was nominated for an Oscar for ‘Schindler’s List’ and ‘The English Patient’, and in the years that have passed since then Ralph Fiennes has given us an enormous number of magnificent performances that were ignored by the Academy. . The seventh nomination he received a few days ago for the Golden Globe for ‘Conclave’, backed by another for the Critics Choice, has consolidated him as a strong candidate to compete again in March for the golden statuette. Taking into account that in his new film he is the moral guide and at the same time an unlikely detective, it could even happen that this time the third time is the charm.

What was it like for you to work with such a cast?

If there is something you can never calculate on a shoot, it is the energy that can be generated among a group of actors. I felt that together we formed a great community. We all felt very good sharing those group moments, which was already noticeable since we did a general reading of the script in a conference room in Cinecittá. It was something totally organic and it could have happened or not. The truth is that it was there. I think it helped that all of our characters participated in the conclave. The story we were telling inspired us in a way to make that happen. But the one who created the environment for it to work was undoubtedly our director, Edward Berger. It was very interesting to work with him, because he basically allowed us to play with each other to see what was generated. And when you have a group of actors like this, that’s wonderful. When you feel like you have permission to explore, it creates a great atmosphere on set. Not all directors allow it and not because there is anything wrong with that. There are those who need to have everything under control because they want to be precise in what they are doing. Edward is not like that, and that is why as an actor I really enjoyed this shoot.

Astrid Meseguer

While the rest of the cardinals are determinedly seeking to obtain the papacy, their Cardinal Lawrence has no such intentions…

I think it’s clear from the beginning of the film that he’s not very comfortable with his position. He even mentions in a conversation that he is thinking about leaving the Vatican, and perhaps having a more monastic life. You feel like you’ve been put in this position that doesn’t convince you. He doesn’t enjoy having that responsibility, but he does. He is a man of integrity and knows that he must take charge of the task he has been given. There’s something about him that reminded me of the George Smiley character in John Le Carré’s books, because he ends up being a kind of reluctant investigator. Above all, Lawrence knows how to listen, and he doesn’t want scandals in this conclave. You don’t want to overlook them, or ignore these things that emerge from the shadows. You want to resolve everything calmly, as they appear. Above all things I feel that he is a good man. Of course, the stories we hear from the curia always involve someone who transgresses, the bad apples out there. But in all churches there are people who, beyond their faith, are searching for a spiritual path. I have met some cardinals and I think they are people with deep spirituality. Logically, there are also the others who have fallen, because they are human beings. Furthermore, it seems to me that Lawrence has a very special type of wisdom, because he understands that all the cardinals there are fallible and that none of them are a saint.

Did it help to have religious advisors on filming?

Of course. I believe that a lot is known about the voting system, and everything is quite documented. What we do not know is what type of conversations are had in the Casa Santa Marta, which is where all the cardinals meet during the conclave. That’s why that whole part is pure speculation. I grew up in a Catholic family. I went to a Catholic primary school in England and then a Catholic secondary school in Ireland. That is why he understood very well the hierarchical structure that reigns in the Catholic Church. And that gave me a pretty great understanding of what we were talking about.