There is now enough evidence (there actually always was) to fully vindicate Pope Pius XII and his decision to save as many Jews in Europe through diplomatic and underground means, given the harsh reprisals against Jews, clergy and civilians every time He and the church actually spoke publicly (the movie references the Dutch bishops condemnation of Nazism, and the subsequent round-up of Jews and converts, most notably St Benedicta of the cross aka Edith Stein). However, the film doesn't mention that shortly after the Pope did denounce the Nazis publicly in his Christmas address of 1942 (and the subsequent aftermath) which further convinced him to take the course he decided. While the series seeks to personify the people he ended up saving (Jews and in one case a communist), the characters are in effect shallow and one-dimensional, despite the love-interest back-stories at work. And while it also showed the reality that the Vatican had absolutely no defense from the Nazis and was purely a mental construct (the similarity to Hotel Rwanda was noted) the film seemed to be full of haughty platitudes from the characters as opposed to portraying what really happened...which would have been far more interesting. Cromwell was an interesting yet lacking choice for the role of Pius XII, since he comes off as an American Grampa figure as opposed to the scholar and statesman Pope Pius XII was. Filmed in a VERY "made for TV" style (laughably, the modern graffitti on the bridges wasn't even edited out), this was simply a topic and subject matter which is much larger than the venue put together here.
Review of Sotto il cielo di Roma
