The Missionary (1982)

Maggie Smith: Lady Isabel Ames

Photos 

Quotes 

• Reverend Fortescue : Isabel?

  Lady Isabel Ames : Charles! What are you doing here?

  Reverend Fortescue : I've come to stop you.

  Lady Isabel Ames : How dare you? How dare you interfere with my plans?

  Reverend Fortescue : You mustn't kill him.

  Lady Isabel Ames : Why not? What business is it of yours, interfering priest?

  Reverend Fortescue : You could hang for it.

  Lady Isabel Ames : No one's going to hang. It's a simple shooting accident.

  Reverend Fortescue : Isabel, this is England in 1906. People don't go around killing each other just because they don't get on!

  Lady Isabel Ames : No, they just endure don't they? Stiff upper lip, that's the British way. I'm sure it wasn't like that in Africa.

  Reverend Fortescue : Africa's primitive!

  Lady Isabel Ames : Oh, yes. God save us from being primitive.

  Reverend Fortescue : There's not so much wrong with the British way, for your class especially.

  Lady Isabel Ames : My class? This is not my class, Charles.

  Reverend Fortescue : You know what I mean.

  Lady Isabel Ames : You don't know what *I* mean.

  [Adopts a changed accent and demeanor] 

  Lady Isabel Ames : You alone, sir? Want some company? Clean and cheap?

  [She returns to normal, Fortescue is speechless] 

  Lady Isabel Ames : Yes. I've disguised it well, haven't I? I had to. The honest tart never gets anywhere. No, they're not my bloody class, thank God!

• [Attempting to talk her out of a dangerous plan] 

  Reverend Fortescue : Isabel, I...

  Lady Isabel Ames : Please, don't. I don't want to be understood.

  [pauses] 

  Lady Isabel Ames : Not now.

  Reverend Fortescue : What are you going to do? What are you going to gain from this?

  [Isabel begins to say something, tearfully sighs, and walks out the door] 

• [Isabel has been injured] 

  Reverend Fortescue : I'm sorry. Dear, God, I'm so sorry.

  Lady Isabel Ames : You were only trying to do the decent thing.

  [Fortescue begins to drape his coat around her] 

  Lady Isabel Ames : No, don't Charles.

  [He continues anyway] 

  Lady Isabel Ames : That's the trouble with you. You're far too decent.

• Lady Isabel Ames : I got it all wrong, didn't I?

  Reverend Fortescue : What do you mean?

  Lady Isabel Ames : I tried to convert the missionary.

• [about Slatterthwaite] 

  Lord Ames : He really is the most disastrous butler. Can't we get rid of him?

  Lady Isabel Ames : Of course we can't. He's been here for 25 years.

  Lord Ames : I don't know why we ever got rid of Marcheson.

  Lady Isabel Ames : You know perfectly well why we got rid of Marcheson.

  Lord Ames : That was only a bit of harmless fun.

  Lady Isabel Ames : Not for the parents.

• Lady Isabel Ames : Fetch the coaches, will you?

  Corbett : Oh, I love it when you give me orders.

  Lady Isabel Ames : [annoyed]  NOW!