One of Britain's Most Polarising Figures Gets a Movie

[Alex]

Starring an American actress no less.

Am on the fence tbh, Thatcher's political career was incredibly interesting, the (incredibly fiercely contested) legacy she left on British society is still being felt to this day, and for good or ill she was undoubtedly a remarkable woman.

I doubt the film will attempt to capture any of those qualities except for maybe the third, and even then, only in a "tough girl makes it in a man's world" kind of way.

Without paying significant attention to both the lasting impact of the pros and cons of what she did to Britain then I can't really see myself getting interested in this, but I thought it was worth posting about anyway.

 

[Elisa Maza]

I've always wanted to learn Thatcher's story and even though this film will certainly romanticise it, I'm still looking forward to it. It's like watching Hitler's or Gandhi's lives on film: no matter whether you agree with them or not, they were people who left a mark in the world.

I'm in.

 

[Octo]

Meryl Streep is too good looking to play Thatcher. She should have starved herself a bit first

This isn't really my kind of film, sounds like a bit of a yawnfest. I spent my childhood trying to avoid listening to these people so I'm buggered if I'm about to start now.

I guess the thing is, these biopics are always going to put a spin on things so I don't know whether it will portray her in a positive or negative light. Its not going to please everyone, and its probably not going to be very accurate because real life is too fucking boring for words

Personally I wish people would stop making films based on real life, I think it colours peoples view of events and gets in the way of the facts. :/

 

[Guts]

I've always wanted to learn Thatcher's story and even though this film will certainly romanticise it, I'm still looking forward to it. It's like watching Hitler's or Gandhi's lives on film: no matter whether you agree with them or not, they were people who left a mark in the world.

I'm in.

Check out Der Undertang, it'd undoubtedly engage you.

edit:

Huh, wildly inaccurate, or she lies. Either.

 

[Ⓐaron]

I have no worries over whether Streep will be capable of playing Thatcher; she's a very capable actress. Whether I will have any interest in seeing this film, however, depends entirely on whether it turns out to be a hagiography or an accurate history. If it whitewashes things like the miners' strike, the Falklands War, the throwing out of mental patients on the street, etc., then it will be effectively little more than a propaganda piece. I don't really expect a two-hour film to cover every controversial aspect of Thatcher's Prime Ministership, but if it doesn't explain why she is "one of Britain's polarising figures" then it won't have much value as either entertainment or history.

 

[Cookie Monster]

http://thelifestream.net/forums/showthread.php?t=7831



I'll hold off on merging tho, I like the discussion here. I for one have no doubt Streep will deliver a solid performance. She's probably the only American actress I know of that I would invest in to play such a role.

 

[Alex]

Oh wow, I even posted in that thread too. Go figure

Aaron's post pretty much sums up my feelings about the film. Like her or dislike her, agree or disagree with her actions or politics, it is impossible to deny that Thatcher wasn't both remarkable and incredibly controversial. Turning the movie into a pro-Thatcher propoganda piece would be simply dreadful.

I have no doubt Streep will be great in the role though. She has the look, voice and mannerisms down very well, as far as the trailer goes anyway.

 

[Hisako]

I have no worries over whether Streep will be capable of playing Thatcher; she's a very capable actress. Whether I will have any interest in seeing this film, however, depends entirely on whether it turns out to be a hagiography or an accurate history. If it whitewashes things like the miners' strike, the Falklands War, the throwing out of mental patients on the street, etc., then it will be effectively little more than a propaganda piece. I don't really expect a two-hour film to cover every controversial aspect of Thatcher's Prime Ministership, but if it doesn't explain why she is "one of Britain's polarising figures" then it won't have much value as either entertainment or history.

I don't mind the odd bit of speculative fiction ala W, because any quasi-biographical piece such as this is always going to have some form of embellishment when it's a translation to film. However, I certainly agree that the most serious business (Falklands, etc.) should be kept as true as possible to serious form.