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THE IRON LADY
With Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Richard E. Grant, Alexandra Roach, Harry Lloyd
Written by Abi Morgan
Directed by Phyllida Lloyd
As the only female Prime Minister of Britain (during most of the 1980s), this movie was bound to be made.
But with Margaret Thatcher still alive (suffering from dementia), it is not as easy a task as making a biographical movie on someone long gone.
Looking at her life through flashbacks, from war-time through her entry into politics via council elections, all the way into her becoming a member of parliament and ultimately holding the highest office, it takes the viewer through key moments of her life. From the impact of her father, meeting husband Dennis, her children and all the political roadblocks and triumphs as well as criticism (from infiltrating the traditionally patriarchal parliament, strike action, the IRA, surviving a bomb attack, the Falklands war and more). This is seen from her point of view as an elderly widow slowly losing grip on reality, and handled in a very effective cinematic way.
With quite a somber tone, in many ways this is more a movie about the pain of growing old, but without skimming over Thatcher's political impact. She was a tough woman living through WWII and had some conservative policies that rubbed many up the wrong way, but also broke the glass ceiling. Opinions on Thatcher spans the gamut, but here it does not try too hard to sway the viewer into either sympathy nor hatred.
Another female British Prime Minister is probably as likely as another black American President after Obama...
Meryl Streep is the only person to portray her, not just because of her amazing acting talent in resurrecting Thatcher, but also in the look. The aged make-up is also phenomenal. It is essential to replicate a historically known figure's image, mannerisms and voice to get as close as possible to that of the real person, allowing the viewer to get pulled into this created reality and make it believable. Streep and the make-up team did an amazing job. The role gave Streep a record breaking 17th Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
On the flip-side, Jim Broadbent's transformation into Maggie's husband Denis is not as accurate, but while used as a pivotal element in the movie, he was hardly the prominent figure while The Iron Lady was in power.
PS. Glad some punk music was used during riot scenes.
5 / C
- Paul Blom
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