Beyond Conclave: 10 other movies that feature the Vatican
So with all eyes on Rome this week as cardinals meet to elect a successor to Pope Francis from behind the closed doors of the Sistine Chapel, here's a look at five other films set in or around the Vatican...
THE GODFATHER PART III (1990)
While the first installment of Francis Ford Coppola's magnum opus was set in New York City, and the second largely in Sicily, much of Part III was based in Rome - particularly around the Vatican City, as Michael Corleone becomes involved in nefarious business dealings involving the Vatican Bank.
THE DA VINCI CODE (2006) & ANGELS AND DEMONS (2009)
Both of Dan Brown's novels were adapted for the big screen in 2006 and 2009, and while both had scenes set within the Vatican - Angels & Demons opens with the death of a pope and preparations for a conclave - the church unsurprisingly denied Ron Howard permission to film there. Instead, other venues around Rome doubled for interior scenes, while Winchester Cathedral was a stand-in for the Vatican in The Da Vinci Code.
MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE III (2006)
The world's most famous Scientologist breaking into the seat of the Catholic Church? It happened in M:I3, when Tom Cruise donned a cassock to go undercover in the Vatican - which was really Reggia di Caserta near Naples. However, some exterior shots were filmed in St. Peter's Square.
ROMAN HOLIDAY (1953)
Of course one of the most timeless Rome-set films ever made had to feature the Vatican in some way. St. Peter's Basilica features in the film's opening sequence, while the nearby Castel Sant'Angelo also features during a scene where Audrey Hepburn dances with Gregory Peck before a brawl breaks out.
EUROTRIP (2004)
Bet you weren't expecting this one. If the Church doesn't allow some of the world's most esteemed filmmakers to shoot within the Vatican City, you can bet they didn't let the makers of this 2004 goofy 'teen sex comedy'. Nevertheless, a sequence is set within the Vatican when main characters Scott and Cooper break into the Pope's private quarters in the midst of a conclave.
THE TWO POPES (2019)
Well, the clue is in the title: of course the Vatican is going to feature in some way. In Fernando Meirelles's 2019 drama, we witness a fictionalised discussion between Pope Benedict XVI (Anthony Hopkins) and the then-Cardinal Bergoglio (Jonathan Pryce) in the wake of the Vatican leaks scandal. Much of the film is set within the walls of the Vatican, although the actual filming locations were spread across Rome and a full-scale replica of the Sistine Chapel was constructed at Rome's Cinecittà Studios.
MADAGASCAR 3: EUROPE'S MOST WANTED (2012)
It's not just live action movies that feature the Eternal City; in Madagascar 3, a group of intrepid animals find themselves pursued across Europe as they attempt to get back to New York City. One scene features King Julien, the ring-tailed lemur, kissing the Pope's ring in the Vatican.
LA DOLCE VITA (1960)
Fellini's best film? La Dolce Vita is certainly one of the iconic Italian director's most celebrated works. Set in Rome, one sequence heavily features the Vatican as jaded journalist Marcello pursues a woman up the 551 steps of St. Peter's Dome, which overlooks the magnificent square. As with The Two Popes, a replica of the dome was built at Cinecittà Studios.
SPECTRE (2015)
It only took fifty years for film's most famous spy to land in Rome. much of Spectre was shot in the Italian capital, while a thrilling car chase through its streets passes up the cobbled Via della Conciliazione, with St. Peter's Basilica looming majestically in the background.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
20-07-2025
- Irish Times
Ireland's ‘film censor' Ciarán Kissane: ‘My mother told me I watched too much TV and now I watch movies for a living'
How agreeable are you? I've developed my skills over the years to see things from a range of perspectives, which is very useful in my job . When you're making decisions on classifications , seeing things from different perspectives and being open to being persuaded on different points of view is important. What's your middle name and what do you think of it? Francis. I was lucky enough to go to Assisi , and while I wouldn't be a very religious person, it's a very spiritual place. The other St Francis that I came across was St Francis de Sales, who is the patron saint of journalists and writers. I don't know whether it was one or the other who inspired my parents, but maybe it was the premonition of the work I was going to do in the future. Where is your favourite place in Ireland? Anywhere along the west coast I have a real love for, and especially the offshore islands. I've been lucky enough to go to most of them, but if I had to pick one place, it probably would be Kilkee in west Clare . Some years ago, I was lucky enough to get involved in scuba diving, and Kilkee has got world-class dive sites at the mouth of a beautiful bay. Describe yourself in three words. Curious, gracious, affable. READ MORE When did you last get angry? When I think about anger, I think about The Incredible Hulk. In the context of that character, anger is about uncontrollable rage and destruction. I'm much more comfortable with things that I find annoying, frustrating, or that make me sad. [ Ireland used to ban films. Now it's more relaxed than Britain or the US about what's on screen. Why? Opens in new window ] What have you lost that you would like to have back? Youth. The energy and the optimism of it. As you get older, you get more aware of the physical dangers around you, and you certainly can't do as much as you could. Take scuba diving, for example. After a dive, I find it harder every year to haul myself up on to a dive boat. I'm still managing to do it, but I wish I were in my 20s when I was able to just jump up and get straight back on the boat. What's your strongest childhood memory? My mother telling me during an episode of Blankety Blank that my grandfather had died suddenly. He lived with us, so he was a constant fixture. He always had time to chat with you. He used to sit on the couch, read a book, smoke a pipe and watch for people coming into the shop – he had a butcher's shop, but at this stage it was very much winding down. I remember the smell of tobacco smoke, and him reading the Poldark books … Where do you come in your family's birth order and has it defined you? I'm the fourth of six. One of the things about being part of a large family is that there was never any sense of somebody else trying to steer your direction or your career path. My mother, who loved books, television and cinema, often told me that I watched too much TV, and here I am watching movies for a living. She'd get a laugh out of that if she were still with us. What do you expect to happen when you die? I expect to be scattered at sea with the Saw Doctors' song Carry Me Away playing in the background. There's a lovely line in it where it says, 'Scatter me forever where I've felt most alive'. To be left to the sea would be great because, for me, the underwater environment is a magical place. When were you happiest? One of the places where I find the most peace is if I'm underwater and there are perfect climate conditions. You don't often get that, but sometimes, when people ask you to envisage a perfect moment, for me it generally comes from some time when I was underwater. Which actor would play you in a biopic about your life? I know how hard it is to get money together to make something, especially something that's non-commercial, so if anyone were to make a biopic about my life – and I don't think anyone would – they would surely struggle to raise the budget. What's your biggest career/personal regret ? I don't really do regrets because I'm a glass-half-full person, and you can't change the past. We have a lot of agency to tell ourselves our own stories, and while you've got to be aware of the negatives, in my view it's critical to focus on the positive. Have you any psychological quirks? My children say that I can't stay still. They may be right – I'm constantly trying to do too much rather than do one or two things. In conversation with Tony Clayton-Lea
Irish Examiner
18-07-2025
- Irish Examiner
Pretty Little Baby singer Connie Francis dies aged 87
Connie Francis, the wholesome pop star of the 1950s and 1960s whose hits include Pretty Little Baby, has died at the age of 87. Her death was announced on Thursday by her friend and publicist, Ron Roberts, who did not immediately provide additional details. Francis was a top performer of the pre-Beatles era, rarely off the charts from 1957-64. Able to appeal to both young people and adults, she had more than a dozen top 20 hits, starting with Who's Sorry Now? and including the Number one songs Don't Break The Heart That Loves You and The Heart Has A Mind Of Its Own. Like other teen favourites of her time, she also starred in several films, including Where The Boys Are and Follow The Boys. Dick Clark with Connie Francis (Reed Saxon/AP) The dark-haired singer was just 17 when she signed a contract with MGM Records following appearances on several TV variety shows. Her earliest recordings attracted little attention, but then she released her version of Who's Sorry Now? an old ballad by Ted Snyder, Bert Kalmar and Harry Ruby. It, too, had little success initially until Dick Clark played it on his American Bandstand show in 1958. Francis followed with such teen hits as Stupid Cupid, Everybody's Somebody's Fool, and Lipstick On Your Collar. Her records became hits worldwide as she re-recorded versions of her original songs in Italian and Spanish among other languages. Her concerts around the country quickly sold out. Meanwhile, a romance bloomed with fellow teen idol Bobby Darin, who had volunteered to write songs for her. But when her father heard rumours that the pair were planning a wedding he stormed into a rehearsal and pulled a gun on Darin, ending their relationship and seeming to set Francis on a pained and traumatic path. She chronicled some of it in her autobiography, Who's Sorry Now? 'My personal life is a regret from A to Z,' she told The Associated Press in 1984, the year the book came out. 'I realised I had allowed my father to exert too much influence over me.' Her father, George Franconero, was a roofing contractor from New Jersey who played the accordion, and he had his daughter learn the instrument as soon as she began to show an aptitude for music. When she was four, he began booking singing dates for her, going on to become her manager. Although her acting career had faded by the mid-1960s, Francis was still popular on the concert circuit when she appeared at the Westbury Music Centre in Westbury, New York, in 1974. She had returned to her hotel room and was asleep when a man broke in and raped her at knifepoint. He was never captured. Francis sued the hotel, alleging its security was faulty, and a jury awarded her $2.5 million in 1976. The two sides then settled out of court for $1,475,000 as an appeal was pending. She said the attack destroyed her marriage and put her through years of emotional turmoil. She suffered tragedy in 1981 when her brother George was shot dead as he was leaving his New Jersey home. Later in the decade, her father had her committed to a psychiatric hospital, where she was diagnosed as manic-depressive. At one point she attempted suicide by swallowing dozens of sleeping tablets. After three days in a coma, she recovered. She was married four times and would say that only her third husband, Joseph Garzilli, was worth the trouble. The other marriages each lasted less than a year. Concetta Rosemarie Franconero was born on December 12, 1937, in Newark, New Jersey. At age nine, she began appearing on television programmes, including Arthur Godfrey's Talent Scouts and The Perry Como Show. It was Godfrey who suggested she shorten her last name. Clark featured her repeatedly on American Bandstand, and she said in later years that without his support she would have abandoned her music career.
Irish Independent
18-07-2025
- Irish Independent
‘Pretty Little Baby' singer Connie Francis dies aged 87
The news of her death was confirmed yesterday by her close friend Ron Roberts, who is also the president of her record label, Concetta Records. 'It is with a heavy heart and extreme sadness that I inform you of the passing of my dear friend Connie Francis last night,' Roberts wrote in a statement posted on Facebook. 'I know that Connie would approve that her fans are among the first to learn of this sad news. More details will follow later.' Francis had been forced to cancel a scheduled US Independence Day appearance with radio host Cousin Brucie earlier this month after being taken to hospital in severe discomfort. On July 2, she wrote in a social media update: 'Hello everyone – as many of you may now have learned through Cousin Brucie's Facebook page, I am back in hospital where I have been undergoing tests and checks to determine the cause(s) of the extreme pain I have been experiencing. 'I had hoped to take part in Brucie's show for Independence Day, having had to cancel a previous slot a few weeks ago when receiving treatment on my hip. Sadly, I had to let him know that I again had to withdraw. My thanks for your many get well soon messages. I will endeavour to keep you updated. Love, Connie.' Francis, who was born Concetta Franconero in Newark, New Jersey, in December 1937, rose to fame in the 1950s and 1960s, becoming one of the most successful female recording artists of her era. While many of her best-known songs were recorded decades ago, she recently experienced a surprising resurgence in popularity thanks to social media. Her track Pretty Little Baby, which originally was not released as a single, has become a viral favourite on TikTok and Instagram Reels in 2024, featured in videos by celebrities including Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian. According to Billboard, US weekly streams of the song jumped from 17,000 in April to 2.4 million by May. Speaking about the track's renewed popularity in May, Francis admitted she 'didn't even remember the song'. She told People: 'I had to listen to it to remember. To think that a song I recorded 63 years ago is touching the hearts of millions of people is truly awesome. It is an amazing feeling.'
