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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,671
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

It was good.  I am not of that faith, but was raised of the faith,  Good acting, beautifu! Scenery and interesting story.  Based on true events.

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Honored Contributor
Posts: 9,329
Registered: ‎02-07-2011

Re: The Two Popes on Netflex

Thanks for the recommendation.  DH gets Netflix.  I may want to watch this one.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 17,739
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: The Two Popes on Netflex

[ Edited ]

There were some true events thown in. This meeting never actually happened. It was a sweet story, but not a docu drama..It sort of portrayed Pope Benedict a harsh person, which he never was. He is a gentle and shy man., much like a country curate,.who never wanted the papacy. He promised Pope JP2 he would accept it, if chosen

 

Pope Framcis is more like the depiction of him...it is a sweet story, I enjoyed watching it

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,168
Registered: ‎05-08-2010

Re: The Two Popes on Netflex


@cherry wrote:

There were some true events thown in. This meeting never actually happened. It was a sweet story, but not a docu drama..It sort of portrayed Pope Benedict a harsh person, which he never was. He is a gentle and shy man., much like a country curate,.who never wanted the papacy. He promised Pope JP2 he would accept it, if chosen

 

Pope Framcis is more like the depiction of him...it is a sweet story, I enjoyed watching it


Thank you for the well-taken reminder, @cherry , that so-called "based on true events" stories can range anywhere from mainly factual to mainly fictional, depending entirely on what the author/screenwriter/director/producer see fit.  

Frequent Contributor
Posts: 122
Registered: ‎12-13-2014

Re: The Two Popes on Netflex

The film was historical fiction. I did watch a few interviews with the Screenplay writer, Anthony McCarten, and I thought he stated that Pope Benedict and at the time, Cardinal Bergoglio (Francis) had three meetings or visits together. Anthony stated that he was involved in a discussion about what the two opposites would talk about and that led to the writing of the screenplay. His research was based on their actual sermons and speeches given. So he did use their own words, but in a fictionalized, yet more intimate setting. The fact that he did not gloss over the more controversial facts from their lives was one of the main points...to show that they too are human. Another point was to show that people with opposite viewpoints can get along. I was never a fan of Pope Benedict, however this film made me see him in a new light. I was less judgmental and more sympathetic. It was really well done. Thought provoking and emotional. The acting was superb

Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,880
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: The Two Popes on Netflex

We were in Rome shortly before Francis became Pope.  I don't think Benedict was very popular ( in souvenir shops, there were 10 John Paul II items to each Benedict).  We also visited the Summer Palace where Benedict initially resided.  When he resigned he went from Rome to Summer Palace via helicopter and it was telecast.  We had been along that same route ( not by helicopter).  I think Benedict set a great precedent for the Catholic Church, why die in the job with diminishing faculties when maybe change is good (plus the opportunity to consult someone on difficult issues.  Sounds like Queen Elizabeth will die on the job but glad that she too is now delegating to others as well.

Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,941
Registered: ‎03-30-2010

Re: The Two Popes on Netflex

I am a cradle catholic, raised in the church, received the sacraments, and had several years of religious instruction from old school nuns.  They wore habits and were tough, think of the Meryl Streep character in the film "Doubt".  My children were also raised in the catholic church.  

In the past several years I have grown away from the church due to the horrible acts of sexual abuse by priests on children.  During this past year, 300 priests in PA were named as abusers.   I knew one very well, not as a priest, but rather as a family member.  His brother married my dad's sister, so we saw him often at family events.  He was very friendly and I can see how he could have had control over children. The fact that church heirarchy knew about this problem, world wide, and allowed the priests to be moved from one parish to another caused me to fall away from the only church I know.  I cannot sit in church and listen to men tell me how to live my life because I always wonder what these men might have done or are still doing.  

 

Bishops around the world, including the Bishop of Rome, did nothing to stop these men.  Children everywhere were abused and those at the very top of the Catholic church just moved the abusers, giving them fresh victims. It sickens me. 

 

The film, Spotlight, is about a factual investigation of priests in Boston.  I recommend watching.