The Iron Lady
Village East Cinema, March 18, 2012
Movie #14 for 2012
Margaret Thatcher was one of the most divisive political leaders of recent history. And MERYL STREEP (pictured) is one of the best actors of her generation. It’s formidable company and writer ABI MORGAN (Shame) and director PHYLLIDA LLOYD (Mamma Mia!) are apparently out of their depth.
The film spends half the time in the present as an eldery and increasingly dotty Maggie, stuck in grief for her husband who is eight years dead, reflects on her life. The rest of the film is flashbacks to said rest of life, from humble beginning as a grocer’s daughter to longest serving British Prime Minister to political ousting. It’s a long and rich story (especially politically with the troubles in Northern Island and you know, Thatcherism) but you wouldn’t know so from the film - angry mob scenes is about as political as it gets.
The character development isn’t much better, come to think of it – I gleaned nothing about Maggie’s relationships with anybody in her life, personal or political, and it’s a testament to the excellent support cast (including JIM BROADBENT as the first husband, OLIVIA COLMAN as the daughter and NICHOLAS FARRELL as the pollie who groomed Maggie for leadership) that these characters were anything but cardboard cut outs.
So, with no character, and no story, the film shows only that Streep is an extraordinary actor – which we new already. It’s a shame she didn’t have a writer or director to match.
