Conclave (2024) — Riley Cross Reviews

Why You'll Love It

I worked the midnight shift at Blockbuster for six years. That means I’ve seen desperate people trying to rent *Timecop* on Christmas Eve and one lady who brought her own copy of *The Passion of the Christ* because she didn't trust our counter's return policy. When I first saw the trailer for *Conclave*, I thought, “This is gonna be boring priest drama.” I was dead wrong. It’s basically *Succession* locked inside the Vatican with a dash of *Sherlock*, but make it spooky.

The premise sounds very holy, but this is a cage match for the soul of the Church. After the Pope dies, the world's most powerful Catholic men are locked in a secret conclave to pick his successor. Ralph Fiennes is carrying his Hermione Chamber of Secrets trauma into these heavy robes, and he is terrifyingly good as Cardinal Lawrence, a man trying to hold it all together while paranoia takes over.

You know that vibe when you’re eating dinner with your in-laws and things get awkward? Picture that multiplied by 500%. The film does this thing where the tension hangs in the air without a single scream. There’s a moment at night prayers where the silence is so loud you can feel the secrets bubbling under the floorboards. The camera just sits on their hands, the trembling chalices, the rosary beads. I found myself gripping my armrests harder than I ever did while waiting for a Friday night horror movie to start.

This is the specific movie for a "Night In" where you want to feel smart but spooked. It’s not jump-scare nonsense; it’s psychological heist stuff where the stakes are literally about the future of the world. Make sure you have a hoodie that fits, turn off every light in the house, and lean in close. You’ll want to see what happens next as fast as possible, but in the best way.

Bottom line: If you want a thriller that scratches your brain as much as it raises your blood pressure, stick this one in the player.