The Iron Lady

I went to see The Iron Lady at the Lexi last week.  The title is ironic, as it is mostly about Lady Thatcher growing old and frail.  Indeed, anyone wanting insight into the politics of the eighties or before would be disappointed, as it takes Mrs Thatcher at her own valuation _ a lifelong doughty champion of "household economy" and personal responsibility whose decisions in the eighties rebuilt the economy.  Not much on how divisive her style was, or awareness that many of the weaknesses we now suffer from (too narrow a manufacturing base, an overmighty financial sector, an ideology rigidly opposed to proper regulation, the overweening power of the Murdoch Empire and so on) might date from her era.

Still, the whole film is well done if you want to focus on her personal story, and Meryl Streep's performance is exemplary.