The Iron Lady (DVD, 2012)

The film begins circa 2008 opening against the backdrop of news of the Islamabad Marriott Hotel bombing, with an elderly Lady Thatcher buying milk unrecognized by other customers and walking back from the shop alone. Over the course of three days we see her struggle with dementia and with the lack of power that comes with old age, while looking back on defining moments of her personal and professional life, on which she reminisces with her (now dead) husband, Denis Thatcher. She is shown as having difficulty distinguishing between the past and present. A theme throughout the film is the personal price that Thatcher has paid for power. Denis is portrayed as somewhat ambivalent about his wife's rise to power, her son Mark lives in South Africa and is shown as having little contact with his mother, and it is implied that Thatcher's relationship with her daughter Carol is at times strained.

In flashback we are shown Thatcher's youth, working in the family grocery store in Grantham, listening to the political speeches of her father, whom she idolised - it is also hinted that she had a poor relationship with her mother, a housewife - and announcing that she has won a place at the University of Oxford. She remembers her struggle, as a young lower-middle class woman, to break into a snobbish male-dominated Tory party and find a seat in the House of Commons, along with businessman Denis Thatcher's marriage proposal to her. Her struggles to fit in as a "Lady Member" of the House, and as Education Secretary in Edward Heath's cabinet are also shown, as are her friendship with Airey Neave (later assassinated by the Irish National Liberation Army), her decision to stand for Leader of the Conservative Party, and her voice coaching and image change.

Further flashbacks examine historical events during her time as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom including the rising unemployment related to her monetarist policies and the tight 1981 budget (over the misgivings of "wet" members of her Cabinet – Ian Gilmour, Francis Pym, Michael Heseltine and Jim Prior), the Brixton Riots of 1981, the miners' strike of 1984–5, and the bombing of the Grand Hotel during the 1984 Conservative Party Conference, when she and Denis were almost killed. We also see (slightly out of chronological sequence) her decision to retake the Falkland Islands following the islands' invasion by Argentina in 1982, the sinking of the ARA General Belgrano and Britain's subsequent victory in the Falklands War, her friendship with Ronald Reagan and emergence as a world figure, and the economic boom of the late 1980s.

By 1990 Thatcher is shown as an imperious but aging figure, ranting aggressively at her Cabinet, refusing to accept that the Community Charge (the "Poll Tax") is regarded as unjust, and fiercely opposed to European Integration. Her deputy Geoffrey Howe resigns after being humiliated by her in a Cabinet meeting, Michael Heseltine challenges her for the party leadership and her loss of support from her Cabinet colleagues leaves her little choice but to resign as Prime Minister, about which she is shown as still angry and bitter twenty years later.

Eventually, Margaret is shown packing up her late husband's belongings, and telling him it's time for him to go. Denis's ghost leaves her fully dressed but without his shoes - in spite of her cries that she is not yet ready to lose him, and she is left alone washing up a teacup.

CAST IRON PERFORMANCE OF THE IRON LADY

I would defy anyone to take on the role of Margaret Thatcher in future and try to come even close to the extraordinary authenticity of Meryl Streep. Even though she never disappoints, Meryl Streep has this time set the benchmark, with her entirely deserved Oscar winning performance.
The film itself, however, is very much less of an achievement since it puts far too much emphasis on MT's unfortunate dotage, which is something quite irrelevant to what made her the "Iron Lady."
If we are ultimately to be assessed according to our senile attributes, not to mention cases of dementia, then there is little to distinguish one person from another.
Margaret Thatcher, love her or hate her, was an exceptional character of great force on the political stage. This film, however, spends much of its time on her dementia, which, even if accurate, serves to undermine its very essence.
Although Meryl Streep is quite magnificent in her portrayal of the demented PM, well assisted by Jim Broadbent, as Dennis, the script becomes increasingly unbalanced as the unfolding episodes of her career as told in flashback are unnecessarily interrupted by irrelevant scenes of her present state of mental deterioration.
Nonetheless, this is an interesting, if flawed, journey through memory lane. Were it just for Ms Streep. I would give it 5 stars, but as a film I could hardly give it more than 3, if that. Hence 4 overall.

VERY GOOD FILM - WORTH WATCHING JUST TO SEE MERYL STREEP IN THE TITLE ROLE

VERY GOOD FILM
BRILLANT PERFORMANCE FROM MERYL STREEP - SHE OWNS THIS ROLE - IT IS HARD FOR ME TO IMAGINE ANYONE ELSE IT - MERYL STREEP NEVER DISAPPOINTS ME - I ALWAY EXPECT BRILLIANT AND I ALWAY GET BRILLIANT NO MATTER WHAT OR WHO SHE IS PLAYING.
THE SCRIPT I THOUGHT WAS A BIT BROKEN AND I FELT THIS FILM COULD HAVE FLOWED A LITTLE SMOOTHER HAS THE FILM NOT JUMPED FROM OLDER MARGRET THATCHER TO YOUNGER MARGRET THATCHER SO OFTEN. BUY OVERALL I LIKED THE FILM SO I GIVE MERYL STREEP 5 STARS BUT THE ACTUAL FILM IT'S SELF IS 4 OUT OF POSSIBLE 5 STARS FOR ME

This one was a hit or miss, so so movie.

I thought it was an okay movie. Certainly Meryl Streep pulled off another wonderful performance. She is the master at transforming herself into whatever role is presented.

But some of this movie did not work for me. The flashbacks and some of the other things.

Great!

Will probably work out great for my wifes' birthday. Thanks to the DVD it will be a surprise to her. We missed at the movies as I broke my leg when it was showing.