Kirpianuscus to critic this biopic is the first temptation for a not Romano-Catholic believer. but, maybe, the rain of stones to the director and actors is not exactly the wise choice. because it is not easy to imagine other solution to tell about a saint. the film is too sentimental and too sweet. a pious homage to a Pope suffocated by clichés and the status of impressive human institution. and to compare with the first part does more damages to this film. but... . it is a remember of well known events. it is a Catholic expression of respect and love for the most important European figure from the Church, in the second part of XX century. and, sure, it is a religious film. more than a biographic one. respecting the rules of the genre. so, it is so easy to critic it. but, in same measure, more important remains to respect a subjective adaptation of one of the most significant reign in Catholic Church from the last century.

Armand a brave act to continue history of a man of century with same actor, in same manner. but the courage is not imprudence but wise exercise to do a large fresco. with little pieces, without hurry or great ambitions. only a drawing in which every line is a way to public soul. a huge carpet - key of a world or only portrait of a fisherman in search of better society. secret - John Paul II is not perfect. it remains same man from Krakow, same intelligent builder of transformation beyond the Iron Curtain. this is sense of this work. and source of its touching beauty.in rest, inspired music, best acting, right atmosphere. and emotion as step for each level of story.because Karol, un Papa rimasto uomo is not propaganda or manifesto. only a map.new part of ...un uomo diventato papa but in different nuances. tale about use of authority, it is only short flash from a never ending beginning.

Piotr A real shame. Such important and complex figure as John Paul II deserves a good movie about him; unfortunately, this one did not come anywhere near that.Piotr Adamczyk gives his best efforts, but even the master violinist wouldn't give too impressive performance when given very poorly written concerto. Essentially, the movie jumps from one episode to another, being a collection of small pieces rather than a cohesive unity; in effect, this leaves the viewer increasingly bored as the movie progresses, as there is nothing really interesting here.But what hurts the movie the most is the ultimate polarization of characters. The Pope is always good, smiling, charismatic, wise, - put in any positive adjective and it will definitely fit in. The baddies are always cold and cynical. Such polarization gives the viewer the impression of watching an old 1910s silent western: with the Sheriff always cleanly shaven and wearing stainless white coat and the bad guys always bearded and wearing black. Of course, all the controversies concerning the Pope are absent: he is perfect human being, and so, becomes a cardboard cut-out rather than a live character, far from the complex, rich personality the Pope in reality was. In fact, the same can be said about virtually every character, with one notable exception.The ironic twist of the movie is that the only character that sticks to the viewer's mind is the infamous Mehmet Ali Agca: somehow, he is the only character in the movie that seems to be human, of flesh and bones. And the scene where he assembles his handgun and prepares for his mission is the high point of the entire movie: suddenly, some life is breathed into a lifeless parade of clichés and cardboard cut-outs. Sad. 2/10.

rps-2 I am an apostate Catholic, an agnostic and a cynic. Yet I was moved strongly by this excellent film which, if anything, is better than the first. Mind you, the bad guys are a little too bad. Heck, even assassins shave sometimes. And not all Soviet officials were quite as dour as the Russian heavies here. And surely Pope Paul John must have had some character flaws, however tiny. But no matter. The film captures the goodness of the man without being either preachy or idealistic. This is a well done historical epic that I trust will be trotted out every ten or fifteen years. It definitely will stand the test of time. And, coincidentally, kudos to CBC for showing it first in North America.