Pope Francis: A Man of His Word Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		3.5

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman December 7, 2018

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word is not the story of the current Pope's life, at least not directly. It does not explore his childhood or ascendancy through the church, eschewing a traditional linear timeline and rigid structural narrative in favor of a portrait painted in his own words. The film briefly explores his namesake, Saint Francis of Assisi, who lived 800 years ago, described as a “revolutionary not only of Christianity, but of humankind at large.” As the film plays and the audience hears from Pope Francis on a number of religious, social, and political issues, the reason he chose his name (Pope Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio) becomes ever more clear. Director Wim Wenders (Submergence) is a facilitator, not a manipulator, simply allowing His Holiness to speak to the camera while, with Editor Maxine Goedicke, assembling clips form speeches and appearances as they support his stance on any given subject.

In the film, Pope Francis addresses a number of issues. Here is a sampling:

• He describes the world as "deaf" and urges people to listen more and talk less.
• “Poverty is at the center of the Gospel.” He shares his vision of "a poor church for the poor." He quotes scripture that supports his view of poverty, that man cannot serve two gods (the true God and the god that is money).
• He champions finding riches of the spirit, in togetherness and service to others.
• He believes employment to be an important part of human dignity.
• Pope Francis bemoans the “plundering and abuse” of Mother Earth and states that protecting the planet “is our most pressing task today.” This leads him to also decry a “culture of waste.”
• He discusses the pace of today’s life, which is detrimental to mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual well-being. He urges people to slow down and play with their children and offers the advice that families not go to bed angry with one another.
• He speaks on social issues such as homosexuality.
• He addresses pedophilia in the church.
• Pope Francis urges individuals to come to terms with their mortality.
• His Holiness also speaks on human suffering, particularly in children, and why he believes God allows it.

The film is made of two primary sources: video highlights of Pope Francis speaking around the world, both to the people and to world governments, including the United Nations and the U.S. Congress, and the Pope directly addressing the camera, speaking as if on an individual basis to everyone in the audience. The result is an intimate audience with the Pope, allowing viewers to come to know him and his positions on social and spiritual concerns, as he believes them, not through any filters that the media, the Internet, or other forms of mass communication may interpret them along the way to the ears of those who want or need (or both) to hear what he has to say. He is passionate in his beliefs, which stem from both a core, steadfast adherence to religious doctrine and also a heart that longs to see peace, happiness, and understanding in the world. Throughout the film, primarily in the addresses to various groups, he gives hope to the ill, the imprisoned, and the downtrodden. Interestingly, he admits on more than one occasion that he does not know the answer to everything and that he is sometimes at a loss for the right thing to say. He humanizes himself in that way, as he does when he meets with those aforementioned who are sick, imprisoned, or simply seeking answers to life's most pressing questions, as he stands with them, embraces them, reassures them with a touch and a smile.

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The picture quality is gorgeous, at least in the straight-on segments in which Pope Francis directly addresses the camera. Such moments are very filmic, highly detailed, razor sharp, and textually bountiful. Facial textures up tight are a joy, and viewers will note the fine material fabrics in the clothing he wears. The opening overhead shot, revealing slowly from dissipating haze, is striking in sharpness and definition even at some high-above perspective. Several such shots throughout the film, away from the Pope, are beautiful. Some of the "real world" video recordings of some of his speeches can look a little rough, with aliasing, jagged edges, and lesser sharpness and resolution obvious. There is some macroblocking at times, such as during a dark shot moving down a low-light corridor at the 12-minute mark and again in nighttime skies and low-light shots at the 47-minute mark. Where it counts, though, in much of the footage made especially for this film rather than sourced from the Pope's previous engagements (much of which looks just fine), the picture excels.

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word features a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack that is much more engaging and active than one might believe if considering only the film's broad overview as, essentially, an audience with the Pope. There are some enjoyable examples of spacial reverb effects as children ask their questions to the Pope at a large gathering in chapter two and as he gives his answers as well. Applause nicely saturates the stage here, too, with enveloping width and depth immersing the listener into the audience. Such effects may be heard again in chapter seven as he enters the United Nations and in chapter 16 when addressing the U.S. Congress. The most prominent effect in the film is a rush of intense wind and rain pounding the stage with full intensity and surround integration prior to the Pope addressing Filipino typhoon victims. Music occasionally appears and presents with healthy clarity, a good bit of verve, nice width and depth, and it melts into the background when individuals speak atop it, such as heard during a song that plays through the background around the 44-minute mark. Basic dialogue delivery is clear and detailed with natural front-center positioning. Much of the film is spoken in languages other than English and forced subtitles appear at the bottom of the screen.

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray release of Pope Francis: A Man of His Word contains no supplemental content. No DVD copy is included. It does ship with both a Movies Anywhere digital copy code and an embossed slipcover.

Pope Francis: A Man of His Word Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Pope Francis is not a man of ideas. He is a man of convictions and a sincere, Biblically shaped conscience, a learned man with a foundation in the Word of God that serves as his cornerstone for his approach to the world, its people, and its problems. He has been painted as radical by some, an unorthodox figure in a heavily orthodox role. That may be true to an extent because he is unafraid of speaking out and speaking his mind on any issue with which he is presented or confronted; were he not such a man he would not have sat in front of a camera to open his heart on today's most pressing problems. The film is terrific, an open, sincere portrait that is not built from distance, from cold writings or interpretations. It's told through his words and his heart. What he says is revealing, intimate, touching, and thought-provoking, and by extension so too is the movie, because the movie is him. Wim Wenders simply sits back and allows his subject to speak. For Catholics and non-Catholics, believers and nonbelievers alike, the film is a must-watch for, if no other reason, a voice of reason in an increasingly unreasonable world. Pope Francis: A Man of His Word's Blu-ray release delivers rich 1080p video and a surprisingly active multichannel lossless soundtrack. Unfortunately, no extras are included, but this is a rare film that speaks so eloquently and simply that it seems to have no reason for any support materials to accompany it. Very highly recommended.