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This historical drama presents a unique telling of the life of Galileo, which neither canonizes nor demonizes the philosopher scientist, but treats the great thinker as a man with foibles who lived in a turbulent time. Little known historical events, which ultimately had an enormous impact on Galileo and his relationship with Pope Urban VIII, are dramatized.

The story begins with Galileo’s death and the effect that has on the Pope. Years before, a prophesy foretold Galileo’s death to shortly proceed Pope Urban’s. With Galileo’s death, Pope Urban VIII is forced to examine his own mortality. The Pope summons the Psychic to help him come to terms with the prophecy. Over the course of the evening, the Pope and the Psychic re-visit all the crucial events and crossroads of the Pope’s relationship with Galileo. Thus, the central story of Galileo and the Pope is told in flashbacks, while the contemporary story of the Pope and the Psychic plays out to its inevitable end.

This film examines the inherent battle between science and religion, but does so in a way that is rich and complex. Unlike many religious leaders of the past, Pope Urban was a man of science, too, and a great supporter of Galileo’s early work. Galileo himself was a God-fearing man who always found a way for his scientific revelations to fit within his understanding of God. The two men began as friends with similar belief systems, despite the fact that history has come to characterize them as being diametrically opposed. In addition, the film examines the nature of male friendship in the fact of power, jealousy and fame.

This film bears comparison to Amadeus with its competitive male relationship and to A Man for All Seasons for thematic heft.

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