So – what’s The Iron Lady biopic all about? For that we have to look at the soundbites. Never think a soundbite is dumbing down. The papers have been full of wrong answers in the last few days. Feminism? Nope. Class war between a lower middle class woman with ambition and upper class Tory toffs with a false sense of entitlement? Wrong again. A woman with the backbone and balls to pursue her convictions brought down by a Cabinet ignored? Er… no. The reason The Iron Lady is getting such attention is nothing to do with the incendiary story of one of the most admired and hated political figures in recent decades. It is about today’s story….dementia. Director Phyllida Lloyd has cleverly steered every interview away from the politics (of which there is very little in the movie) on to the universal issue that places it firmly on today’s news agenda. The end we all face – the loss of faculties, the temporary nature of everyone’s life. That’s been picked up by the movie’s star Meryl Streep; “It’s Lear for girls!” A great soundbite that says in four words exactly what this movie is – Shakespearean in scope, feminist in intent, current in its relevance. And nothing to do with wearing a hat in the Commons – though that apparently is something the movie got right, too.
Tags: Iron Lady, Soundbite, Streep, Thatcher
Posted in Latest Media Training News | No Comments »
Leave a Reply