Pope film sparks Catholic controversy

  • Thread starter Thread starter 1holycatholic
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
1

1holycatholic

Guest
Pope film sparks Catholic controversy
A film about a panic-prone Pope who has unwittingly been thrust into the papacy and has to hire a psychiatric assistant to help him has sparked controversy in the Roman Catholic Church.


Habemus Papam will compete at Cannes Photo: AFP/GETTY

Traditionalists say that the film, by the acclaimed Italian director Nanni Moretti, is “an instrument of Satan” and is particularly offensive as it has been released in the approach to Easter.

Bruno Volpe, the Catholic lawyer, has launched suit for defamation against Moretti and the producers under the terms of the Lateran Pact, which extends the same protections to the prestige of the pope as to the Italian president. Mr Volpe said Habemus Papam (We Have a Pope), never mentioned the current Pope by name but it was nevertheless clear that it was a parody of Pope Benedict XVI and dishonoured the figure of the Pontiff in general. Salvatore Izzo, a Vatican expert, branded the work disrespectful and boring in an open letter to Avvenire, the Catholic bishops’ newspaper.
…
 
I heard about this film the other day. I am not sure what I think about it to be honest.
 
I watched this yesterday, and thought it was great and
Took it all as very pro catholic.

All The cardinals praying individually for guidance in a silent hall was beautiful.
The ending was also a powerfull expression of the pain of such an outcome.
 
I watched it and thought it was poor. I watched it because it featured Jerzy Stuhr,
a brilliant actor and someone who worked with Krzysztof Kieslowski (whose films should be seen by everyone). The film itself was a little cynical of the Catholic faith but it wasn’t too terrible. I’d give it a miss as it did not have anything new and seemed very unrealistic. One does not simply get to be a cardinal and in line to be the next Pope, only to wake up one day and have doubts about one’s abilities. One does not simply drift along from priest hood all the way up the hierarchy to Pope. If we elected Popes from people on the street, this film would be pertinent. The film wants to create problems where there are none and so is contrived in my mind. Stuhr gives a decent performance though :).
 
I don’t know. Like i said I think it was pro catholic actually very much so.
The one who was elected pope had strong faith that was not questioned.
None of the cardinals were presented as corrupt etc… But all seemed very devout and quite holy.
Like I said the individual prayers when they were voting was great, it showed they were all seeking to do gods will.
The man who was elected had views and passion for influencing the church, but was overcome by the role and responsibility, and feelings of inadequacy to lead,while I agree it was a bit silly given he was a cardinal, it did give an impression of the gravity of the position and did not mock it. He did care, for the church and so decided what he thought was best, I felt at the end that he abandoned the church. But this made the role/position so much more clearly important, it showed the significance of the pope, by showing it stumble.

While silly, I get the strong feeling that that is what they were aiming for.
 
DaddyGirl said:
This is a work of fiction, yes?
I haven’t seen it but from the sounds of the posts, it doesn’t seem anti-Catholic…just showing some human frailties and vulnerabilities of the character of the pope. And it is true that we have seen many popes in the past with frailties and challenges and vulnerabilities far worse than this, for sure.

They can sue a filmmaker for a made-up character?
Can I ask those who have seen it…what details of the character make it look like it’s the current pope? Are the specifics that close to the real person?
Click to expand...
It shows a Pope who does not want to be pope but is elected anyway because there is an impasse with the election. But the problem exposed in the film is not the sort of problem you see in a Pope.
It’s not the sort of problem you’d see in any profession where the profession requires at least a reasonable amount of effort and know-how and time. The problem presented is not realistic. Such problems can happen, but they are picked up much sooner. You can’t for example advance through the ranks from private to general, be successful at that for a long time and suddenly realise you’ve been totally hopeless and faking it all along when you’re to be promoted to Joint Chief of Staff. You’re so bad, you’re not even sure about the basics they teach lieutenants. A total collapse. That just does not happen unless the process before hand was a Mickey Mouse process. You can’t wing it as a priest, bishop, cardinal for years only to collapse when asked to be Pope. The guy isn’t just afraid to be Pope, he questions his entire career. It’s a naive film that’s all and a convoluted, contrived story. Honestly, I don’t say that because I’m Catholic.
 
If the head of the Italian mob in NJ can seek help for panic attacks, why can’t the Pope?
 
DaddyGirl said:
I see. Interesting character/psychological dilemma to explore, even if it is unrealistic. And that’s what filmmakers/writers do, whether we like their stories or not, yes?
But the filmmaker can’t be sued for making a film that isn’t realistic and is naive, right? We’ve had films about presidents and popes and other leaders before that have been unrealistic and naive.
The legal and controversial problem, it seems, is that the lawyer is saying that the character is “clear that it was a parody of Pope Benedict XVI”, as per original post.

Having seen the film, do you agree with that?
Click to expand...
No. It’s a generic Pope. I don’t think it’s the Holy Father and I don’t think anyone should sue. However, I don’t know anything about the rumours surrounding the current Holy Father so I can’t say more.

On the realism, I think films should explore realistic issues, if we are to take them seriously and if they are to resonate with us. 🙂
 
NewEnglandPries said:
If the head of the Italian mob in NJ can seek help for panic attacks, why can’t the Pope?
Click to expand...
I think it’s way more than a panic attack. It’s a total identity crisis and crisis of meaning and with that faith I guess although that was not mentioned as I recall, but a Pope questioning his abilities in such extreme manner would probably encounter some crisis of faith too. A total collapse. That’s how I interpreted it.
 
His faith did not fail, he asked for Gods forgiveness when he made that last speech.
There was no crisis of faith.

Though overall he should of bore his cross so to speak.

But he was completely at a loss as to how he could do it, he wanted to disappear and run away. He was completely scared!
The film hinted at a depression and some kind of issue with his mother as a child.
(note he calls out to his mum when falling apart emotionally and the pshycoanyst theories)

The film hinted at his positive ideas for the direction of the church, his face lit up as he started to talk about them.

No he made a choice out of complete fear and knowing the gravity of his choice.

What’s the name of that OT saint that tries to run away from Gods will?

I think this was part of the films plot.
 
Does the film recognize the fact that, once a Cardinal has been elected Pope, he has the opportunity to turn it down and give the Cardinals the opportunity to elect someone else, if he truly believes he can’t handle the position?
 
DaddyGirl said:
I would be interested to see how this filmmaker shows a man of God thrown into a situation like this, and how he copes with it as a human but still follows through on his duty and vow as pope for the people.
Click to expand...
DaddyGirl:
Nothing in the description above so far sounds like Pope B, right?
How is the character like him?
Click to expand...
Well, the fear of such responsibility and not wanting to be Pope sounds a little bit like Pope Benedict. If I recall correctly, he had almost reached the “retirement” age, he dreamt about rest, but instead he got the biggest responsibility of his life. However, he followed his duty, he trusted God to lead him, he trusted that God wants him to be Pope for some reason. That’s all said in his book-interview with journalist … Light of the world? Not sure how it is in English.
And that’s why I don’t quite like this movie (although I may want to see it - just to know how it really is). Pope Benedict’s example seems for me a great example of faith in God. Of how someone should behave. How to rely on God.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top