Pius XIII and John Paul III are forced to confront one another, as terrorists take a priest and six students hostage in Ventotene.
Lenny wakes up and seeks to help a wounded family, while a new threat to the Church draws closer.
Having uncovered John Paul III's secrets, Voiello begins his plan to regain power. Meanwhile, Lenny Belardo secretly returns to the Vatican.
Look ahead to the TV shows still set to premiere in the rest of 2020, including "Selena: The Series" and "The Stand."
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Title: The New Pope (2019– )
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Acclaimed actor John Malkovich, known for his performances in Dangerous Liaisons and Being John Malkovich, stars in the HBO series "The New Pope." What other roles has he played?
Under the papacy of Sir John Brannox under the name of John Paul III, Vatican tries to clean its good name after a series of sexual scandals that jeopardized the institution itself. But an unexpected trouble threatens John Paul III when Lenny Belardo, the previous Pope Pius XIII who was in a coma from nine months ago after to suffer a heart attack while he was celebrating a mass, wakes up to claim his place as the legitimate Pope of Rome. The news about Pius XIII's comeback shocks the Christianity, turning the admiration of millions of believers in true idolatry for the returned Pope. Given the unusual situation of two Popes in the Vatican at the same time, it unleashes an inner war between Pius XII and John Paul III, the first to recover his power, and the second to keep it. Written by Chockys
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The New Pope was worth a second watch as I still had questions about a number of things after having viewed it the first time. The second time, binging it all in three days as opposed to following the series from week to week, turned out to be a more enlightening way to enjoy the it because the details of previous episodes were still fresh.
So here it is.
What I loved:
The incredible cinematography, lush and just gorgeous, pared with beautiful scenic-design and costumes.
The writing. The dialogue is stylized, with an individual beauty and respect for the use of language and it pulls the viewer into a living novel that floats in and out of familiar and less familiar levels that most of us associate with reality. The twists and turns of the story are utterly impossible to predict.
Sorrentino, whether by intention or not, holds up a mirror to the viewers, often giving them the opportunity to trigger themselves, if they are so inclined, into strong, knee-jerk, emotional interpretations and various thematically diverse expressions of righteous indignation in the early episodes, only to have the perspective completely turned around in the later episodes. It is therefore, usually quite easy to tell which authors judged the entire series without having seen all episodes. There is a certain poetic justice in this.
The music.
Voiello. Everything about Voiello
An awakened Lenny
Any scene with Leopold Essence
Paolo Sorrentino introduces Federico Fellini to David Lynch and they get along famously
Episode 9
What I loved less:
The accent. Malkovich's character was given some of the greatest eloquence and most of the most beautiful verbal expressions in the entire series. I deeply respect John Malkovich as an actor. While many have come and gone, Malkovich, at his age, is right in the thick of things. He's in Billions, The New Pope and whatever else is next on his agenda. I wanted it all to work but I was pulled out of the story from time to time, asking myself just what accent that is actually supposed to be. Perhaps a back-story with an American nanny or some such would have helped.
Wrapping it up:
As you can tell, I was enchanted by The New Pope. It has an unadulteratedly unique voice which means that there is nothing even remotely like it that has ever appeared on a screen with the exception of The Young Pope.
I, for one, am hopeful that HBO will continue in the tradition that has made the company legendary, producing excruciatingly high-quality content, by soon inviting Mr. Sorrentino in to discuss the particulars of his POPE WORLD PREQUEL.