La Dame de fer

This film's strength lies in the acting by Meryl Streep. She breathes life into the persona of Margaret Thatcher and makes her feel like an authentic person rather than a caricature (whether positive or negative). However, the film has no other strengths. The story is completely unfocused and there is no overall point or theme to the random events.

An ageing Margaret Thatcher struggles to deal with the passing of her husband Dennis, and looks back at her rise to Britain's top job.

I looked at the relatively low score, and wondered how much of it was to do with the film, and how much was to do with the level of dislike that still exists for the former Prime Minister.

There's something missing, and I think it's the direction and the actual storytelling, it's so clunky, if someone were to re-edit this film, I think they could do something with it.

It's a fascinating story, Britain's first woman Prime Minister, a story that deserved to be told. For me, the good outweighs the bad, but the elements were here for this to have been a superb film, sadly it just isn't.

I liked the way the original news footage is mixed in, it's well fused. If only they'd have shown her Spitting Image character.

Meryl Streep delivers an outstanding performance, she is sensational, the voice, the poise, the body language, she is fantastic. Jim Broadbent is wonderful as Dennis, the pair combined so well.

6/10.

There's no doubt about it: Meryl Streep will be nominated for her 17th Academy Award for her portrayal of Britain's most controversial Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, in this otherwise underwhelming biopic. Streep is mesmerizing as usual, but the mode of storytelling employed by screenwriter Abi Morgan and director Phyllida Lloyd – sporadic flashbacks among elongated stretches of following the elderly and mentally fragile Maggie – is a huge misfire. The scenes which recount her path from young adulthood through to local politics and then to her 11 years of turbulent leadership are intriguing, however they are too far and few between to really grip. Sure, it checks off the list as far as famous moments go, but a more in depth insight into how she ran the country would've been nice.

This is largely a negative picture of Thatcher, which may be fair, but I would have preferred a picture of her that showed both sides - why people despised her and why those who loved her did. It spends a lot of time focusing on her mental decline in her later years, which was kind of slow and boring. I thought this missed a chance to be a deeper character exploration.

not good or bad. only strange because the courage to present the lead character more than a puzzle, to create more than a sketch of an admirable maker of history is absent. and only good point of The Iron Lady remains the presence of Meryl Streep in the lead role. the error is temptation to present the career of Prime Minister as flashes of memory. the last years of life are only a dark room far by the flashes of media. her sense of life remains the fight for the wise administration of the United Kingdom's interests. not the illness. not the fall. a part, far to be significant, becomes more important than entire life. Margaret Thacher's memory deserves more than an essay . or a sketch.because the film remains touching and seductive in a special form but not convincing.