100 Movies Every Catholic Should See #1: A Man for All Seasons (1966)

Directed by Fred Zinneman. Screenplay by Robert Bolt. Starring Paul Scofield, Wendy Hiller, Leo McKern, Robert Shaw, Orson Welles, Susannah York.

For decades, A Man for All Seasons has been considered one of the greatest Catholic films of all time. After all, here was a prestige Hollywood film, a Best Picture winner no less, focusing on a Catholic saint, Thomas More. The main drama of the film centers around his fall from worldly honor and wealth due to his persistent clinging to his faith. More’s voice throughout is unapologetically and unmistakably Catholic, perhaps surprisingly so given the director, writer, and lead actor were a Jew, a Communist, and an Anglican. It is no wonder, then, that A Man for All Seasons regularly tops lists of best Catholic films and appeared on the Vatican’s list of great films published in 1995. On its face, the film seems to be a great Catholic film.