The Missionary

12/24/2025

Although he does well enough here, I couldn’t ever get the vision of Michael Palin as a sort of “Ripping Yarns” character throughout this pretty weak vehicle for himself and Maggie Smith. It’s the turn of the 20th century and “Fortescue” (Palin) has been brought back to London from Africa by his Bishop (Denholm Elliott) who wants him to get his sleeves rolled up with the women of ill repute who are blighting the city. Of course, it offends his sensibilities somewhat but when he meets the benefactor of this whole enterprise - the married and very wealthy “Lady Isabel” (Smith), he discovers that he has more than met his match. Let’s just say there are strings attached, and many of them are in her corset. It also turns out that she has a little more in common with his prospective subjects tha