The Iron Lady (2011)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Raymond W

  
  Meryl Streep is absolutely incredible as Margaret Thatcher, having mastered the accent, quirks, and style perfectly, but on the other hand, the film itself is not a complete triumph. Phyllida Lloyd has chosen to structure this film similarly to La Vie en Rose where the story is told… More
  Meryl Streep is absolutely incredible as Margaret Thatcher, having mastered the accent, quirks, and style perfectly, but on the other hand, the film itself is not a complete triumph. Phyllida Lloyd has chosen to structure this film similarly to La Vie en Rose where the story is told as flashbacks. In La Vie en Rose, this method is effective and moving, but here it just serves as a checklist of the most important events in Thatcher's career which becomes muddled and confusing. After a slow and somewhat boring first half, the film picks up the pace and gets deeper into the story allowing the audience to become involved and care about the characters. What doesn't help that process though, is the fact that the film doesn't really know what it wants to say about Thatcher, who was such a controversial political figure; loved by some, despised by others. I can understand the fear of trying to portray one view of Thatcher and not the other, but at least say something. I came away feeling like she was somewhat of a hypocrite and failed to do what she so strongly strived for in life. Maybe it was supposed to be that way as a depiction of her struggle against dementia, which was accurate if you ask me. Dementia is a horrible thing; worse I think than cancer, but Thatcher never lost her political side which provided some mild comic relief. Abi Morgan's screenplay was fairly well written, but it could definitely have been better as there were moments when I thought "How staged is that?", or "That was awkward...". The Iron Lady is worth the price of admission to see the impeccable Meryl Streep, but the film just gets bogged down and muddled trying to get all the big and important events fit into the film, and if the career of Maggie was presented in a different format, I feel the audience may have connected to Thatcher more and it would have been much more moving at the end. The Iron Lady she was.

• Everett J

  
  "Iron Lady is a movie starring Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher. The first and only female prime minister of England. I expected a film about her as the minister, but it's more than that. It's a movie about Thatcher in her later years, living a lonely life, often… More
  "Iron Lady is a movie starring Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher. The first and only female prime minister of England. I expected a film about her as the minister, but it's more than that. It's a movie about Thatcher in her later years, living a lonely life, often hallucinating with visions of her dead husband. While reflecting on her life and career in politics. She's ultra conservative, which I'm considered a liberal by some, so I didn't quite care of her political views, but it never goes too overboard into her politics. Streep is amazing, and often times you forget your watching Streep. But, Streep is the only good thing about the movie as a whole. It's slow, the story is jumbled, and other than Streep the performances aren't really that great. Watch for Streep, but keep your expectations low. Unless, your into slow British quasi political movies, then it's right up your alley.

• Pedro H

  
  <i>Never Compromise</i> <b>Pointless</b>. Honestly this movie has nothing to offer, it doesn't even manage to entertain or educate the viewer. You leave the theaters with nothing to take it, so I suggest you skip this one. Meryl Streep plays Margaret… More
  <i>Never Compromise</i> <b>Pointless</b>. Honestly this movie has nothing to offer, it doesn't even manage to entertain or educate the viewer. You leave the theaters with nothing to take it, so I suggest you skip this one. Meryl Streep plays Margaret Thatcher, one most influential women of the 20th century. Meryl Streep does an good job, as always in her acting skills. But the movie itself lacks all aspects of cinema. Phyllida Lloyd makes a <b>mess </b>, by trying to split the story in two: Margaret's career, and social life, in the end of the day, you would have wished you never seen this movie, it will literally put you to sleep. <u>Margaret Thatcher:</u> <i>"We will stand on principle, or we will not stand at all."</i>

• Greg S

  
  Caught in what appears to be the early stages of dementia, Margaret Thatcher (Meryl Streep) remembers her rise and fall from power as Britain's first female Prime Minister. Streep's performance, especially as the vulnerable older woman, is the reason to watch. Otherwise,… More
  Caught in what appears to be the early stages of dementia, Margaret Thatcher (Meryl Streep) remembers her rise and fall from power as Britain's first female Prime Minister. Streep's performance, especially as the vulnerable older woman, is the reason to watch. Otherwise, the film is like looking at old press clippings: fun if you're a Thatcher fan or professional detractor but of only passing interest otherwise.

• Tony G

  
  There's a moment in "Iron Lady" where Margaret Thatcher now in her later years and battling mental degeneration is staring at herself in the mirror listening to the voice of her deceased husband in the background. The look of confusion and attempts to snap back into… More
  There's a moment in "Iron Lady" where Margaret Thatcher now in her later years and battling mental degeneration is staring at herself in the mirror listening to the voice of her deceased husband in the background. The look of confusion and attempts to snap back into clarity are brilliant; the acting is superb and the depiction of the worst part of aging is gripping. Unfortunately that is not the movie "Iron Lady" promises to be. The opportunity to tell the story of one of the most fascinating and powerful female politicians ever is missed and that is regrettable. But despite the miss, "Iron Lady" is worth watch to witness a master class performance by one of the best actresses ever: Meryl Streep. Streep's every move, speech, look captures Margaret Thatcher perfectly. Similar to her transformation into Julia Child, Streep doesn't impersonate, she embodies. She elevates the material and gives the audience a masterful performance that should snap her an elusive 3rd Oscar. As for the rest of the film, "Iron Lady" has its moments. Phillipa Lloyd seems more interested in telling the story of Thatcher in her later years so the film becomes less about her rise to the most powerful position in Britain and more of a personal drama about old age. That story is done well ... but I wonder how powerful it would have been to see Streep dig deeper into political and governmental machinations vs watching her as an old lady packing her dead husband's belongings. So go see "Iron Lady" for Streep. She's worth the price of admission alone. Just don't expect to know more about Thatcher than you can already find on Wikipedia.

• Nadira I

  
  Sad to say that it is an unsatisfying film. It is worth watching if you're looking for just great acting rather than great story. It is undeniable that Meryl Streep is an outstanding actress that will potray Margaret Thatcher well and the film is looking into gender fairly, but… More
  Sad to say that it is an unsatisfying film. It is worth watching if you're looking for just great acting rather than great story. It is undeniable that Meryl Streep is an outstanding actress that will potray Margaret Thatcher well and the film is looking into gender fairly, but being 'politically neutral' surely hurt this film into the root. This film is humanising Thatcher, but also showing why people doesn't like her and perceived her government as an unsuccessful one. Plus, going into why she's taking capitalism as a choice and her take on policies at the time. All seems very contradictory. Story-wise it feels dull and I didn't find it very engaging, even if we're only looking for her character without her politics. It is strange to see that, until the very end of the film, she didn't even told her doctor that she's having hallucinations and ended up battling it herself until the end. Maybe this is linked with how feminist and strong she is, but still it didn't make this film's ending meaningful in any way. Phyllida Lloyd, good job in getting Meryl as a cast. But do consider better script writing next time.

• Tracy K

  
  I was fully aware that I was being manipulated while watching The Iron Lady. There's no real attempt to provide a concrete, hard-hitting political biography here; the film suffers from the same problems that plagued J. Edgar: too much material crammed into too small a box,… More
  I was fully aware that I was being manipulated while watching The Iron Lady. There's no real attempt to provide a concrete, hard-hitting political biography here; the film suffers from the same problems that plagued J. Edgar: too much material crammed into too small a box, resulting in a scattered Greatest Hits-type approach to Thatcher's life and career, one that seems to be pushing us to root for her as a heroine, carefully avoiding too much time focused on the uglier bits. And yet...this film is much more watchable than J. Edgar, not (but in no small part) just due to Meryl Streep's hypnotic performance. I thought the structure - an addled, elderly Thatcher reflects on her life through a series of hallucinatory conversations with her dead husband - while somewhat overly sentimental at times, actually worked for the most part. We may not get "the" Margaret Thatcher, but we get "a" Margaret Thatcher - a Thatcher who is dreadfully human, and this is pretty much all we can say about anyone in the end. It makes the film's title perhaps more ironic than anything else.

• Josh M

  
  Despite Streep's richly deserved accolades, this film was a huge disappointment. Its focus (50% of screen time) is Margaret Thatcher's current dementia and decline, and only superficially about her remarkable life and polticial journey, told in quick flashbacks, very well… More
  Despite Streep's richly deserved accolades, this film was a huge disappointment. Its focus (50% of screen time) is Margaret Thatcher's current dementia and decline, and only superficially about her remarkable life and polticial journey, told in quick flashbacks, very well done, but frustratingly brief. Mostly, Maggie's at home losing her marbles and talking to her long dead husband Dennis (Jim Broadbent, excellent as always) and we see quick flashbacks about her youth, rise to power, struggles with the opposition and her own party. The best segment, a scene where she bullies and humiliates her cabinet just before her ouster was a rarity, because the other 'greatest hits,( i.e. election, Falklands war, miner's strike, etc.) are so quick and superficial, giving us little insight into the overall long life and acheivements of this woman. There's a flashback scene where husband Dennis berates Maggie for abandoning him and the chidren in favour of her political ambitions. Okay, but there's no scene illustrating this important point so we just have to take his word for it. Not good enough. Alzheimer's is a worthy topic for a drama, and has been dealt with poignantly and memorably in movies like Iris (also with Jim Broadbent - and Judi Dench) and Away From Her. This film is not in that league. Screenwriter Abi Morgan failed to make me care as much about Maggie's struggle with dementia as much as her amazing and eventful public life. Streep was spectacular thoughout, however, and may deserve Best Actress. The dementia scenes feel long and dull, mostly beacause Maggie's by herself or talking to her phantom Dennis. But Meryl's far better than the movie (and script) she's in. Director Phyllida Llloyd made me invest and care far more about the characters in her masterpiece, Mamma Mia than in this misguided flop. That's just wrong.

• Alice S

  
  I thought this would be a basic biopic, but it's actually a rather intimate look at an aging, dementia-riddled woman. I don't know if the schizophrenic hallucinations of Denis, Thatcher's late husband, or the Ayn Randian crazed-devotion-to-the-point-of-alienation are… More
  I thought this would be a basic biopic, but it's actually a rather intimate look at an aging, dementia-riddled woman. I don't know if the schizophrenic hallucinations of Denis, Thatcher's late husband, or the Ayn Randian crazed-devotion-to-the-point-of-alienation are accurate, but they make for some good sound and fury. I'm not really a fan of Meryl Streep or a scholar of Margaret "Lady Balls" Thatcher, but the former does play the latter to amazing effect, embodying the balance of bouncy and dainty, shrill and stalwart, that Thatcher must have exuded to be such a magnetic, albeit controversial leader. Streep is impressive in the aged scenes as well, with her stooped posture, befuddled squint, and hoarse muttering.

• danny d

  
  aside from the acting, this was an incredibly unsatisfying film. lloyd had decisions to make on what story to tell, and i believe she made all of the wrong ones. while i wanted more of the career, we are saturated with an intimate portrait of the least significant part of thatchers… More
  aside from the acting, this was an incredibly unsatisfying film. lloyd had decisions to make on what story to tell, and i believe she made all of the wrong ones. while i wanted more of the career, we are saturated with an intimate portrait of the least significant part of thatchers life. streep was amazing as usual, but the film, like j. edgar from this year, missed a great chance to tell a great story about a very interesting person.

• Candy R

  
  It does sympathise with Margaret Thatcher. Highlights areas of her time in power through news reports and scenes where she has had to make important decisions. Excellent cast. Meryl deserves an Oscar!

• Cory T

  
  For those who aren't familiar with Margaret Thatcher, the uninitiated would gather from the muddled mess of a biopic that is 'The Iron Lady' that was just a female counterpart to Josh Nash's schizophrenic delusions. The makeup of an elderly, decrepit Thatcher is… More
  For those who aren't familiar with Margaret Thatcher, the uninitiated would gather from the muddled mess of a biopic that is 'The Iron Lady' that was just a female counterpart to Josh Nash's schizophrenic delusions. The makeup of an elderly, decrepit Thatcher is beyond extraordinary, but the movie sputters too long on the late-period dementia with Thatcher reminiscing with her deceased husband and occasionally flashing back to the Cliff Notes of her impregnable political career. When Dennis, Thatcher's neglected, posthumous husband finally departs, it's oddly supernatural in nature and reduces her mental illness to a fleeting problem. Phyllida briefly recognizes the IRA attacks in the UK and the union strikes, but she never delves into anything esoteric or illuminating about Thatcher's stubborn refusal to be a sounding board for her parliamentary staff. After Thatcher's stint in the Dartford association, there is an astronomical time lapse until her nomination as Prime Minister. The film is anticlimactic and impetuous about dotting the trajectory of Thatcher's lifespan without highlighting her motives.

• Mark H

  
  The Iron Lady is flawed. There's a very good film contained within, but I suspect some of it is on the cutting room floor. Margaret Thatcher's political pursuits are where this shines. Some judicious editing could have taken this to the next level. I'm reminded of… More
  The Iron Lady is flawed. There's a very good film contained within, but I suspect some of it is on the cutting room floor. Margaret Thatcher's political pursuits are where this shines. Some judicious editing could have taken this to the next level. I'm reminded of another Meryl Streep vehicle. Julie & Julia was a good movie - whenever the chronicle focused on Julia Child, that is. So too is The Iron Lady a superior production whenever Margaret Thatcher is the tenacious leader of Great Britain. The agreeable matriarch of the present simply diminishes dramatic tension whenever things starts to escalate. Perhaps that's the contradictory perspective director Phyllida Lloyd wanted to relate, but Thatcher's energizing display as an obstinate firebrand of the past is so much more engaging. Meryl Streep deserves a lot of recognition for her singular performance, the story - not so much. http://fastfilmreviews.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/the-iron-lady/

• Film C

  
  I am veryshocked by the reviews and lack of the amount of critics that actually liked this movie! Although being released and being based on another british leader around the same time The Kings Speech came out last year i think that it is worthy of the same reviews as the kings… More
  I am veryshocked by the reviews and lack of the amount of critics that actually liked this movie! Although being released and being based on another british leader around the same time The Kings Speech came out last year i think that it is worthy of the same reviews as the kings speech! Although i was apprehensive about an american portraying a british controversial character, i now coulnt think of anyone more finer to act as Margerate Thatcher, Meryl Streep did an absolute fantastic job and portrayed the emotion so well i was emotional in quite a few places, especially towards the end! A great cast, fantstically written and fantastically acted! I loved every moment. I'm not in slightest bit interested in politics or even know much about Lady Margeret Thatcher but that doesnt mean you cant enjoy such emotion and heartbreaking scenes but also regardless of Thatchers controversial choices whilst in parliament she is an inspiration to women, the ambition she shows is amazing! Truly a brilliant movie!

• Michael S

  
  If you are going to see "The Iron Lady," do so for Streep and Streep alone, because not much else... actually NOTHING else works here. But even then, a great performance does not make a bad film any more tolerable. In fact it just makes the production's shortcomings… More
  If you are going to see "The Iron Lady," do so for Streep and Streep alone, because not much else... actually NOTHING else works here. But even then, a great performance does not make a bad film any more tolerable. In fact it just makes the production's shortcomings all the more apparent. Streep, always bringing a unique passion to her roles, has been better in other (far superior) films. Here we have Margaret Thatcher impersonated... and that's it! But of course that isn't Streep's fault... not in the least; her excellent transformation and work are unfortunately undermined by a shallow screenplay that fails her. She has nothing good to work with. That is unacceptable... especially when dealing with such a controversial and prominent historical figure. The film itself fluctuates from bland, to bad, to almost unwatchable in spots. Nothing feels authentic; nothing holds any weight. I admittedly know very little about Thatcher the person, but after seeing "The Iron Lady," I felt I knew even less than before because of how ingenuine and artificial the entire production is. History wasn't reflected here as much as Bio-pic stereotypes were! I feel critics have been a little too kind with this one, and no doubt it's because of the central performance (which is really strong). But this is a movie and it doesn't work as such. Streep is great and deserving of the buzz she's been getting. It's just unfortunate that's she's stranded in a film not deserving of her talent.

• William D

  
  Meryl Streep's performance as Margaret Thatcher is awesome to behold. (When is Streep less than magnificent?) But "The Iron Lady" has some problems as a film. It's not bad, but it isn't great. The movie, directed by Phyllida Lloyd ("Mamma Mia"),… More
  Meryl Streep's performance as Margaret Thatcher is awesome to behold. (When is Streep less than magnificent?) But "The Iron Lady" has some problems as a film. It's not bad, but it isn't great. The movie, directed by Phyllida Lloyd ("Mamma Mia"), spends entirely too much time in the present day, following the senile Thatcher around her apartment as she putters, looks through memorabilia, and hallucinates that her dead husband is still living with her. (The eighty-something Thatcher is still alive but rarely appears in public.) These sequences are affecting in the beautiful, mournful opening to the film. But over and over again, Lloyd interrupts the dramatic action of the film to bring us back to the disoriented old lady ambling around the house. It's hard to understand what Lloyd found so fascinating about this footage. My companions and I agreed that the far more interesting sequences were of the young Thatcher struggling to overcome class and gender discrimination to rise to power in England. If Lloyd and screenwriter Abi Morgan (who, incidentally, also co-wrote another film in current release, "Shame," starring Michael Fassbender) had focused in more on Thatcher's youth and her heyday as Prime Minister, "The Iron Lady" would have been vastly more interesting. As it stands, "The Iron Lady" is quite superficial. At times one senses an almost ghoulish desire on the part of the creative team to denigrate the arch-conservative Thatcher. She was ultra-tough in her attacks on the British Left in the 1980s, but now she's demented and alone. No one loves her. Was Lloyd happy to depict the arch-nemesis of the Left as a woman with little to no family or friends? If so, I find this disgraceful and not the work of an artist. Even though I disagree with much of Thatcher's policies, I find her an immensely interesting figure -- far more interesting and significant than the rather shallow Phyllida Lloyd.

• Richard B

  
  The Madwoman of No.10 A character portrait more than a biopic, The Iron Lady dramatises Margaret Thatcher's middle aged madness through the perspective of her demented madness of old age. Many have asked if this film should have been made while she is alive - but the key… More
  The Madwoman of No.10 A character portrait more than a biopic, The Iron Lady dramatises Margaret Thatcher's middle aged madness through the perspective of her demented madness of old age. Many have asked if this film should have been made while she is alive - but the key source of insight is Carol Thatcher's account of her mother's dementia - so if her daughter can comment in public, so may the film makers. Meryl Streep's portrayal is uncanny, and especially effective in old age - the Thatcher we don't know. She and Dennis, the wonderful Jim Broadbent, are the only fleshed out characters in the piece. The rest are props to tell the story. And what a story it is - a story of grandiose self importance that always carried more than a shred of madness. The women involved - Streep, Lloyd (director) and Morgan (writer) create a classic 'women's picture' - one woman's struggle - to live up to the ideals instilled on young Margaret Roberts by her doting dad. Of course, everyone pales into insignificance for young Margaret by comparison (except the supportive Dennis). All men are bastards. In this world, there are no other women, except maids. Thatcher can say and do what she pleases, because she is so much smarter and better than anyone else. There is no collaboration with this psychotic woman, there is only her inevitable descent into madness as the Poll Tax is proposed, the final straw in her destruction of consensus Britain. Like Reagan, she is co-creator of the 2007 financial collapse - due to greed, the de-regulation of the financial markets, and the self -righteousness of the frankly bonkers economics of it all. So don't despair that the history is not quite accurate, or it doesn't really 'do justice' to her 'reign'. That's not the point. While the film tries hard to get the audience on 'her side' by implying her greatness and difference in almost every scene, all it does is demonstrate that Thatcher was always a madwoman on a mission - and now, we can say 'Mission Accomplished.' Right up there with The Black Swan - last year's portrait of a madwoman - Streep will walk down the red carpet with her Oscar in a few months.

• Mike N

  
  What a dull, languid affair. Basically, everything that I expected out of it. This Margaret Thatcher biopic is as lifeless as it gets, about one foot in the grave, much like old-age Thatcher is in this film, reflecting on her life, or is it the unfocused direction and writing? Meryl… More
  What a dull, languid affair. Basically, everything that I expected out of it. This Margaret Thatcher biopic is as lifeless as it gets, about one foot in the grave, much like old-age Thatcher is in this film, reflecting on her life, or is it the unfocused direction and writing? Meryl Streep ticks all the boxes in approximating Thatcher quite nicely, except that the script gives her basically no soul whatsoever, let alone real principles to boast about. It's about the impression of having principles rather than something bona fide to stand for, just like it apes all the political gesturing and ascent and demise, etc. etc. The Iron Lady tries to garner sympathy by showing an old woman, career long past and death not far away, come to terms with her life and her dead husband in a way that really could've been any lonely geriatric. It just happens to be Margaret Thatcher in this case. And I came away from the film not knowing anymore about her, other than the historical events that she presided over (courtesy of a few obviously-placed newsreel montages). But there appeared to be no effort to mine any meaning from Thatcher's life whatsoever - the first female prime minister of the UK, but not really shown as a truly powerful person here other than having a stern British accent - making this film both a missed opportunity and probably a little demeaning.

• Eric H

  
  The biopic is a tricky genre. If the character doesn't interest you to begin with chances are you won't enjoy the movie. On the other hand, if you know the subject inside out you'll probably be left disappointed. How do you tell the story of someone's life in less… More
  The biopic is a tricky genre. If the character doesn't interest you to begin with chances are you won't enjoy the movie. On the other hand, if you know the subject inside out you'll probably be left disappointed. How do you tell the story of someone's life in less than two hours? For me the best biopics are those that choose to focus on one specific period or incident in the subject's life. This is not one of those. You would think it would be impossible to make a boring movie about such a controversial figure yet somehow Lloyd has. Ever seen one of those TV shows where each episode takes a year from the past and plays the chart hits of the year over footage of the main news stories? Well half the running time of this is like watching one of those episodes on fast forward. All the major points of Thatchers reign, the Falklands, the miner's strike, poll tax etc are skimmed through in two minute segments. The rest of the movie uses the cheap technique of a senile Thatcher and the ghost of her husband Dennis forming a tacky Greek chorus. Streep is fantastic, especially in the scenes were she plays Thatcher in her prime years. Sadly these scenes give her nothing to sink her teeth into, the movie scrambles from one scenario to another as if desperate not to be seen to either demonise or be sympathetic towards the character. The only time we see the potential of how good this could have been is the Falklands sequence, if the movie had chosen this as it's main focus it would have been a lot more satisfying.

• Glenn G

  
  In the spirit of this season's Oscar-baiting biopics about unlikable people (see J. EDGAR), THE IRON LADY gives us Meryl Streep in a towering performance as the infamous British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. Told as a memory piece of a woman slowly losing her mind, we first… More
  In the spirit of this season's Oscar-baiting biopics about unlikable people (see J. EDGAR), THE IRON LADY gives us Meryl Streep in a towering performance as the infamous British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. Told as a memory piece of a woman slowly losing her mind, we first meet Thatcher as a doddering old woman buying milk in a convenience store. We soon learn she's long since retired and carrying on conversations with her late husband (a delightful as usual Jim Broadbent). It's through this prism that we flashback all over the place through the life of one of the 20th centuries' most divisive leaders. Early scenes go a long way towards humanizing Thatcher and it's the wonderful performance of Alexandra Roach as a young, ambitious, outspoken Margaret who truly makes us care. Not that Meryl Streep isn't thrilling (she is), but her role limns Thatcher's power years and then her waning ones, so her job isn't to work our heartstrings as much as Roach's. Despite the material being rather skimpy, Lloyd works it into a frenzy. I kept thinking that she watched a LOT of MOMMIE DEAREST and EVITA before production, as there are many similarities - Streep's almost campy resolve reminded me of Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford (just watch her claim her pearls or order the sinking of an Argentinian vessel and you'll know exactly what I mean), and the film is shot and cut like a musical at times. Thatcher and her minions descending government staircases is straight out of Alan Parker's handbook, and the use of montage and stock footage reminded me so much of that film's THE LADY'S GOT POTENTIAL riot sequence. THE IRON LADY wants to have it both ways by showing us an unwavering leader who alienated so many unemployed people that the only ones with careers in England at the time seemed to be THE CLASH, with their Anti-Margaret songs. At the same time, we're shown a woman who believed she was doing the right thing by forcing her fellow citizens to buckle up and make huge sacrifices. It seems there's a lot of rewriting of history here...but with an unreliable narrator who is suffering from dementia, it makes perfect sense. This is an incredibly entertaining movie with neverending Meryl Streep acting miracles. It's uncanny how much detail she puts into this character - from the shaking as her elderly self sits down, to her many-changing emotions as her entire cabinet walks out on her, to the blistering Parliament speeches she nails, to her staggering sparring with then U.S. Secretary of State, Alexander Haig. An Oscar nomination is a given here, and well-deserved. To say that THE IRON LADY is a giant step up for Director Phyllida Lloyd from her debut with the execrable MAMMA MIA would be like saying that life on Earth is better than life on Mars. Still, this is a huge leap forward regarding her filmmaking abilities. She uses slo-mo, jump cuts, and keeps things moving at an impressive clip. I look forward to seeing what she does next...and that's saying something considering how inept her previous one was!

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