We Have a Pope (2012)
Average Rating: 6.1/10
Reviews Counted: 73
Fresh: 45 | Rotten: 28
No consensus yet.
Average Rating: 6.7/10
Critic Reviews: 26
Fresh: 21 | Rotten: 5
No consensus yet.
liked it
Average Rating: 3.3/5
User Ratings: 5,369
My Rating
Movie Info
Nanni Moretti joins forces with the great French actor Michel Piccoli to tell the story of Melville, a cardinal who suddenly finds himself elected as the next Pope. Never the front runner and completely caught off guard, he panics as he's presented to the faithful in St. Peter's Square. To prevent a world wide crisis, the Vatican's spokesman calls in an unlikely psychiatrist who is neither religious or all that committed, played by Moretti, to find out what is wrong with the new Pope. As the
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Cast
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Michel Piccoli
Cardinal Melville, The ... -
Jerzy Stuhr
Spokesperson -
Renato Scarpa
Cardinal Gregori -
Franco Graziosi
Cardinal Bollati -
Camillo Milli
Cardinal Pescardona -
Roberto Nobile
Cardinal Cevasco -
Ulrich Von Dobschütz
Cardinal brummer -
Gianluca Gobbi
Swiss Guard -
Nanni Moretti
Male Psychotherapist -
Margherita Buy
Female Psychotherapist -
Dario Cantarelli
Theater Company, Theate... -
Camilla Ridolfi
Child -
Leonardo Della Bianca
Child -
Manuela Mandracchia
Theater Company, Theate... -
Rossana Mortara
Theater Company, Theate... -
Teco Celio
Theater Company, Theate... -
Roberto De Francesco
Theater Company, Theate... -
Chiara Causa
Theater Company, Theate... -
Mario Santella
Master Of Ceremonies -
Toni Laudadio
Chief Of Police -
Enrico Ianniello
Journalist -
Cecilia Dazzi
A Mother -
Lucia Mascino
Shop Assistant -
Maurizio Mannoni
TV Journalist -
Giovanni Ludeno
Hall Porter -
Giulia Giordano
Girl At The Bar -
Francesco Brandi
Bartender -
Leonardo Maddalena
Boy At The Bus -
Salvatore Miscio
Priest -
Salvatore Dell'Aquila
Doctor -
Dià-Pasòn
Musical Band -
Peter Boom
Cardinal -
Erik Merino
Cardinal -
Kevin Murray
Cardinal -
Harold Bradley
Cardinal -
Jelle Bruinsma
Cardinal -
Alfredo Cairo
Cardinal -
Mauro Casanica
Cardinal -
Don Somasiry Jayamanne
Cardinal
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We Have a Pope Trailer & Photos
All Critics (75) | Top Critics (26) | Fresh (45) | Rotten (28) | DVD (1)
Always the star of his movies, even when he shouldn't be, the atheist Moretti gets caught up in his own papal bull. But Piccoli's blessed empathy prevails.
Top CriticWe Have a Pope takes its shots at the institution of the Catholic Church, but this is by no means a scathing satire. It's more of a character study, insightful and nuanced, about a man grappling with a profound sense of inadequacy, questioning himself.
Though skeptical, the film isn't at all mean-spirited.
"We Have a Pope" is a nuanced, moving and profoundly humane exploration of doubt, faith, weakness and resolve.
"We Have a Pope" has great heart.
On the surface, this Italian dramedy about a troubled cardinal reluctant to accept his election to the papacy is a likable, understated farce. Look closer and you'll see that it has serious issues on its mind.
While We Have a Pope contains an interesting idea for a film, it ultimately fails to portray the struggle Cardinal Melville is going through, which is the centerpiece of the entire film.
This is certainly a great idea for a film, it just needs better execution, less stalling for and wasting of time, and a better means of showing the difficult period that Cardinal Melville is going through.
To its great credit, just before the credits, We Have A Pope slips away from its droll dramedy and offers a sharp anticlimax--a pointed stab at Catholicism now. The declaration of its title turns out to be the emptiest statement of all.
While Moretti is as secular as the character he plays in the film, he gives us a papal portrait that's nuanced and counterintuitive; we're used to the humanity of popes evinced as Borgian lust and avarice, not as self-doubt and humility.
Vatican-based comedy could have been sharper
This is rich material that Moretti mines for both superficial absurdity and deep pathos. But he refuses to forge an orthodox happy ending, let alone a tinny satire.
The premise is truly inspired, the settings are handsome, and the 86-year-old Piccoli is superb in the role of a reluctant Vicar of Christ, his doubts and hopes and fears playing across his face like clouds.
Are we more fascinated by a peek inside the Vatican walls or by this portrait of a humble man who would rather watch a Chekhov play than pontificate?
It isn't quite a religious experience, but it is a sweet one. In other words: We have a charmer.
Audience Reviews for We Have a Pope
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
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- Cardinal Melville: I have a parental deficit. But I don't know what it is.
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- Female Psychotherapist: What do you do?
- Cardinal Melville: I'm an actor.
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- Cardinal Melville: I can't do this.
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Latest News on We Have a Pope
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Foreign Titles
- Habemus Papam - Ein Papst büxt aus! (DE)
- We Have a Pope (Habemus Papam) (UK)
