The Iron Lady & J. Edgar

The Iron Lady

Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Richard E Grant

Dir. Phyllida Lloyd
Scr. Abi Morgan

AND

J. Edgar

Leonardo DiCaprio, Judi Dench, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts

Dir. Clint Eastwood
Scr. Dustin Lance Black

So, I’m going to try something a little different here. I saw these two films back-to-back in my movie watching schedule and I was struck that I would ultimately write largely the same review for both. Both are biopics about an extremely powerful individual, both are slightly controversial in their treatment of their subject, both flawed in many ways, both rescued in the end by a stellar lead performance. So, here goes my first double-whammy review. Woot woot.

The Iron Lady is an intimate look at the life of Margaret Thatcher, the UK’s first and only female Prime Minister. J Edgar is a look of the public and very private life of J Edgar Hoover, the first director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Both stories give a great deal of time and focus to the private demons and failings of these two influential twentieth century figures and, in the case of Iron Lady, perhaps too much focus. It is clear from these films and what we already know that they were both people who divided opinions. To this day, Thatcher is both reviled and worshipped. Hoover too, who can only be respected for the changes he made to law enforcement in America but was clearly not liked by many.

In both films, we are greeted with the subject in their older years – Thatcher, as she reportedly is now and Hoover, as he was shortly before his death in 1972. The past, in both stories, is told through personal remembering and flashbacks. In J Edgar, we get a far more complete history of Hoover and his rise to power. The Iron Lady is basically half past, half present. I don’t think this will be a failing for all who see it – I think many will be fascinated by the way Thatcher is portrayed as an elder stateswoman. For me, I felt they rushed through too much history in too short a time. But, I guess, the filmmakers are presuming that their audience has enough knowledge of Britain in the Thatcher years. And, after all, neither film is a documentary. For my money, J Edgar is a more balanced historical telling than The Iron Lady.

I think in both films we are invited to feel a degree of sympathy for a largely unlikeable individual. Certainly, we are presented with their inner torments. This is more subtle in Iron Lady and more in-your-face in J Edgar. But ultimately, there is clearly an attempt to explain why they were the way they were and, therefore, why they did what they did. I don’t think either filmmaker is trying to manipulate the audience into forgiving all sins. And I appreciated, as an audience member, the freedom to make up my own mind. And my opinion was much as I expected it to be – I respect both Thatcher and Hoover but find I can’t like either of them very much. And, in Hoover’s case, was surprised anyone ever could.

There are major flaws in both these films. Some are shared – the slightly clunky nature of non-linear story telling that doesn’t always work; self-importance (but how does one possibly avoid this?); about twenty minutes that could have easily been shed. J Edgar features terrible, distracting make-up and about another twenty minutes that should have been cut. I think the major problem in both films is that each lead performance outshines all else. Neither Streep nor DiCaprio is backed up with brilliant story-telling or hugely compelling insights. And that’s a great shame.

I can’t fault the acting in either of these films. Streep and DiCaprio are powerhouses. We have come to expect this of Streep and she doesn’t fail to deliver in any way. I was more surprised by DiCaprio who, let’s face it, I love to hate. But he really was amazing – he physically isn’t the obvious fit for Hoover, but this is soon forgotten as he lives and breathes his character in such a convincing way. And his emotional performance is simply outstanding and, at times, gut-wrenching. The supporting casts in both films are equally brilliant. Broadbent, as Denis Thatcher, is predictably perfect. Hammer (you’ll recognise him as the Winklevoss twins in The Social Network), as Hoover’s number two Clyde Tolson, is understated and haunting. And Dame Judi – well, can she do no wrong? As Hoover’s overbearing mother, she plays one of her most evil roles to date and is simply tremendous.

I recommend both these films but acknowledge they will be frustrating for the viewer. Both are certainly flawed but are saved by great acting and interesting subjects. And, of course, both teach us a little about power corrupting and all that jazz. If I had to make a choice, I would say that J Edgar is the better, more fascinating film.

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Margaret Thatcher: Watch your thoughts for they become words. Watch your words for they become actions. Watch your actions for they become... habits. Watch your habits, for they become your character. And watch your character, for it becomes your destiny! What we think we become.

J Edgar Hoover: What's important at this time is to re-clarify the difference between hero and villain.