In a previous edition, The Catholic Spirit asked readers to send in their favorite Catholic movies. The following are three of the responses.

My favorite Catholic movie is “The Sound of Music” because of its depiction of religious life. The convent is front and center throughout the entire movie. Maria wants to be a nun, but God has something else in store for her. We experience Reverend Mother’s joy in her song “Climb Every Mountain.” The beautiful church is the setting of Maria’s marriage. And at the end, the nuns defy the Nazi authorities to protect the Von Trapp family by hiding them in the convent. I also like Hitchcock’s “I Confess” (1953) with Montgomery Clift as a priest who is willing to be accused of murder rather than break the seal of the sacrament of confession.

Carmencita F. Crespo
St. Hubert Catholic Community
Chanhassen

With no need to explain why or how, my hands-down favorite is “A Man For All Seasons.” But since you ask that I tell why this is my choice, I’ll try to do so.

St. Thomas More lived the faith with courage. The film is brilliantly written, photographed and acted and fully deserves all the Oscars it won, and they are many.

The film brings us intimately into More’s mind and heart, helping us to understand who he was and how his family loved him. The screenplay also puts More’s life in stark contrast to the vanity of the king and his court. Somehow, the script does all this with absolutely no shred of sentimentality or drippy preaching. This movie has the most famous cut on action of all film history. An incredible achievement!

Scott Brooks
Holy Family
St. Louis Park

My favorite Catholic movie would be “Our Lady of Fatima,” which I watch every time it shows on tv. The three children who saw the visions of Our Lady had such amazing faith at so young an age — and throughout their lives to their deaths — even though they were persecuted and ostrasized by the townspeople.

Judy Coleman  
St. Thomas the Apostle
St. Paul