I’m a recovering Cathoholic. May as well go full AA here: “Hello, my name is Steel; it’s been 86 months since my last communion.” I make fun of a lot of things; Pope Francis probably isn’t going to get off any easier than anybody else. In all seriousness, however, I don’t mean to belittle anybody’s faith … so long as your faith leads to non-exclusionary and non-sociopathic behavior. If your faith works for you, God bless you. Literally. Just know that whatever strength and comfort you derive from your religious affinity, I do not. And the history of the Catholic Church, both recent and traditional, ain’t exactly drawin’ me back to the flock, knowwhatI’msayin’?
That said, if there’s one guy who could ever push me back, it is Pope Francis. Frandalf the White is not only the first Pope of the Western Hemisphere and the first Jesuit, he’s the first Pope of my lifetime I’d actually want to have a conversation with. We don’t see eye-to-eye on everything, but this is the first Pope I can think of who puts love above dogma. If he had to choose between saving the world but never wearing the collar again and advancing the cause of Christianity regardless of world doings, you know he’d take saving the world in a snap. This is my guy. Yeah, this is the one who deserves a movie, unlike that tool Pope Benedict. Screw him.
Pope Francis: A Man of His Word plays more like a political ad than a documentary. There seems little question that Wim Wenders set out to make a very pointed attack on the false God of Opulence. Unopposed, Francis gets to spout off about the evils of greed (“a man cannot serve two masters”) and the challenges we face as a people. He makes no bones about the damage we have all done to the planet Earth. Sadly, this Papal coup is a far stronger ecological statement than An Inconvenient Truth II. It’s actually a little scary that the Vatican right now has a stronger command of science than the entire Republican Party.
I’m actually a bit floored by how philosophical Pope Francis is. It is quite clear that this man has spent a great deal of time thinking about all sorts of subjects from his role in the world to education to individual responsibility. He always falls back on love; it’s like his “go to” move. “Yo, Pope, whatchoo got on … Nautical Archaeology?” “If it’s about love, I’m all for it; if it’s about Earthly destruction … less.”
You’ll forgive me of I put words in the Pope’s mouth. I know he would dig my interpretations; that guy’s got a great sense of humor. He’s no Trevor Noah, but you know that old man is just dying to reincarnate as a stand-up comedian somewhere … so long as he knows the poor are gonna be ok. Oh, yeah, I should probably talk about the movie at some point – it’s a great introduction to the (relatively) modest and chatty world of Pope Francis. He talks directly to the 
camera and then we get to see a clip illustrating either he in a crowd or B-footage of a subject he’s explaining. In between, we get snippets of another movie about the life of his namesake, Saint Francis of Assisi; Wim Wenders is quick to point out the similarities of the two men. I’m thinking that might be some sort of backyard Eurojealousy out of Wenders, a kneejerk need to find the Euro-equivalent and prove his continent’s worth – I dunno how Frankie Goes to Vatican honestly compares to a 13th C. holy man; all I know is the first Latin American Pope puts to shame the previous dozen combined.
I’m afraid this film does get a bit tiresome. The Pope is a great guy and all, but truth is Pope Francis: A Man of His Word lacks for conflict and the repeated monotone of his voice will eventually rock you to sleep. I think he’s a wonderful man, a very worthy subject, and his experience is worth sharing, but at the end of the day, he isn’t Trevor Noah and I’m quite sure my brain turned off around the 75-minute mark; your results may vary.
♪Radio Vatican
Boogie with a crucifix
You’re livin’ in Assisi
Forget about the bishoprics
Let’s do the Popequake
Good God for heaven sake
Talk about Pope Music
Talk about Pope Music
Pope Pope Pope music
Shoobie doobie Missal
Song of Bernadette now
Bop bop vessel
Let’s hear Joan Osborne
Eeny meeny miney mo
You there, where’s the nuncio?♫
Rated PG, 96 Minutes
Director: Wim Wenders
Writer: Wim Wenders, David Rosier
Genre: Popechat
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: True believers in the message
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: 1%ers
Talk about Pope Music♫
