I consider “A Man for All Seasons” an excellent movie with several very dramatic scenes well worth watching. But after we’ve seen Thomas More trapped by King Henry and his henchman Thomas Cromwell, I think this scene between More and his wife within his cell in the Tower of London provides the depth of feeling that More needs to make his story more than just a matter of religious devotion. We see a man reaching out to his wife to absolve him of his crime, the crime of making her a widow. And we see a blunt, plain-spoken wife recognize her husband’s breaking point and provide him with the support he desperately needs. Depth of feeling has a lot to be said for it.
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The Cromwells seem to have been a right-royal line of scheming bastards. In Limerick, “Cromwell” is a four-letter word!
He was lucky to have Leo McKern portraying him in this movie. His Cromwell drips with venom and malevolent intelligence.
I can’t think of a Leo McKern perfomance that isn’t first rate. From curmudgeonly Rumpole, Ladyhawke’s Father Imperious or Cromwell in of A Man for All Seasons he’s there and being the part.
I agree 100%. I used to enjoy Rumpole’s mantra for his wife, “She that must be obeyed.”