An Iron-Clad Biopic

★★★1/2
Rated PG-13

This certainly has been the season for unlikely biopic subjects. First, Leonardo DiCaprio captivated as FBI honcho J. Edgar Hoover, and now the indomitable Meryl Streep brings us a thought-provoking view of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady. True, both figures loom large in history, but they hardly lend themselves to the biopic's tendency to whittle away at main characters until they emerge, one-dimensional and ready for their close-up.

Even more so than J. Edgar, The Iron Lady isn't what you'd expect. Its political bias is non-existent. It neither glamorizes nor vilifies Thatcher. Instead, the film presents her as many things at once: a middle-class shopkeeper's daughter and Oxford graduate; a doting mother and a woman who can ignore her twins' pleas to stay home without shedding a tear; a decisive prime minister and a leader who, at times, privately questioned her own staunchness.

This theme of Thatcher's multi-dimentionality is given further weight by director Phyllida Lloyd (Mamma Mia!) and screenwriter Abi Morgan's (Shame) choice to tell the story through flashbacks. Iron Lady opens from the perspective of an elderly and isolated Thatcher. It soon becomes clear that she's suffering from dementia. She's visited by hallucinations of her late husband, Denis, who helps to jog her memory. His prodding, together with touchstones like the state photographs decorating Thatcher's home, set her to reminiscing about critical events during her career. At one point, coming out of a reverie starring a much younger and more coherent Thatcher, the elderly woman looks into a mirror and laments, "I don't even recognize myself anymore." Not only does this sad juxtaposition make Thatcher a more relatable figure, but it also de-politicizes the film by shifting the focus to the human condition.

These unconventional aspects of the film aside, The Iron Lady also relies on many typical devices of the genre: News footage punctuates Thatcher's flashbacks to provide context to events like the Falklands War and the many union protests staged during her time in office. And, other characters are peripheral to Thatcher's story-perhaps even more so in this biopic, which leans heavily on the interpretation of the prime minister as an outsider and independent thinker. To its credit, these capitulations to genre convention don't take away from Iron Lady, as they might in other biopics. There is plenty that feels "fresh" about the film.

Those who criticize The Iron Lady would be correct in arguing that the film fails to present a singular opinion of the controversial leader. However, such a critique misses the movie's finer points-namely, its ability to provoke questions about what it meant to be a woman and a leader in the late-20th century. The Iron Lady's greatest strength is that it provides insight into the mind of a powerful female forced to reconcile gender expectations and her own self-identity.

Wanted: Your Opinion (In 10 Words or Fewer)

We're always looking for the community's input-and now we're offering you a chance to share with your neighbors your opinion of the latest blockbusters, foreign films, indies, and romantic comedies to hit the big screen! Each week, we'll print the best reader-submitted reviews in the Living section and online at www.zip06.com. Send your 10-word movie review to Living Editor Meredith Crawford at m.crawford@shorepublishing.com along with your name and hometown and join the conversation!