The Two Popes

Tried watching Netflix's "The Two Popes" over holiday break. Got through the first half hour before it lost my attention. I suppose I'll return to it at some point. I remain a fan of Anthony Hopkins, and he did his best given the script and material he had, but the initial character sketches of both Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger and Jorge Mario Bergoglio -- who exist to serve as mouthpieces for the most hackneyed and predictable theological cliches -- their exchange sounds very much like the fever dreams of Hans Kung after one too many gin and tonics.

I suppose those whose general conception of Ratzinger has been fueled by the press and/or the hyperbolic rantings of The National Catholic Reporter will find this film absolutely thrilling. Conversely, those who became acquainted with Ratzinger/Benedict via his theological writings or even his pastoral addresses, not to mention the historical facts of his life and papacy, will find the depiction of him in The Two Popes to not quite jive with reality, though it must be said it does do a satisfactory job of "preaching to the choir."

• Two Popes, Two Many Untruths, by John Waters. First Things 12/17/19.