Stop! Thatcher time.

If Meryl Streep doesn’t win an Oscar for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher, it will only be because those judges need their heads examined. Her speech, movements and general comportment in the film triggered a sense of déjà vu, as though I was watching Thatcher herself up there on the screen. It’s pretty safe to say Streep now has one more new fan. I always thought she was a pretty decent actor anyway, but this film demands a whole new level of admiration.

What about the film itself? Well, it’s inevitable that people will come to this film with pre-conceived notions. As an active politician, Thatcher was one of those people who everyone had a view on. To this day she is either loved or hated, and that’s just the way it is. Whatever one’s political view of her is, she has to be admired for what she achieved, as she was the first female Prime Minister of the UK, and the longest serving of the 20th century.

If you view it as a political film, it fails miserably, as there is very little real analysis of any of the big issues that she tackled during her time as Prime Minister. However, there’s a plethora of books and films analysing these subjects already, so why would anyone want yet another film of that nature?

She really is made of iron! There's buildings inside her head.

However, I don’t think this is intended to be a political film. There are certainly many ways to interpret a film such as this. To me, it is an examination of how someone with dementia who played such a seminal role in British politics deals with their memories; both what they achieved, and what they failed to do. Seen in that context, I think this film does what it set out to do very well.

It is often said that for those who suffer from dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, the present has less and less significance as the disease progresses, while past memories remain strong. Hence we see the elderly Thatcher entering a dinner party, just before we are shown her 20-something year old self at another dinner party vehemently arguing with the men present about politics. As she falls asleep, we see flashbacks to events and incidents during her younger years.

I don’t think the film is for or against her either; while it shows her in quite a positive light dealing with the Falklands War, it also shows her as a bully, humiliating her colleagues during cabinet meetings. We see her self-obsession, and her unwavering stubbornness, which is shown to be her ultimate political downfall.

There would have been MAYHEM if there wasn't a blue suit in this film.

Although we see her distress as a mother when she learned of the deaths of soldiers in the Falklands War, and her immediate concern for her husband, Denis, when their residence was attacked, there is nothing of her reaction to the hunger strikers. Intriguingly, there is almost nothing of her young children; we see them in photos and old family videos, but almost nowhere else.

We see her obvious love and affection for her husband, and see him at her side throughout, but what of the children? We see her grown up daughter, but not her son - we don’t even hear him speak. The elderly Thatcher speaks of him, and we hear her side of a phone conversation, but that’s all. It’s quite easy to read between the lines that her family life suffered quite drastically as a result of what she saw as her sense of duty, but what Denis Thatcher called her ambition.

If you’re a fan of Thatcher, you should see this film as it shows her for the fallible human that she was and is behind the politics. If you’re not a fan, who thinks she got far too big for her boots as a politician, then you should also see it, for it shows the huge dose of humility that dementia has served on her.

Christine Brookes