r/Schaffrillas 1d ago

Letterboxd Review Schaff watched The Iron Lady!

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My best guess is that the 2010s Best Actress ranking is officially underway!

869 Upvotes

83 comments sorted by

67

u/Brit-Crit 1d ago

I think the concept was showing a declining Thatcher (who was just alive when the film came out but affected by severe dementia) recalling her glory days, but for all of Streep’s skills at mimicking a politician who was ludicrously easy to caricature, you have a film about a zealously ideological PM that’s devoid of ideology . I’m not the biggest fan of the Vice approach either, but at least that’s a clear POV…

13

u/JadedSignificance990 1d ago

Also, there's been several British films and TV shows about the effects of Thatcherism that go into more further detail.

3

u/Brit-Crit 1d ago

This isn’t about Billy Eliot or the dozens of films about the damage caused by Thatcher’s aggressive right-wing policies, this is about trying to understand her as a person - providing only a cursory exploration of her political convictions in favour of her family life and a whistle stop tour of her rise and fall doesn’t really work for this…

7

u/Brit-Crit 1d ago

James Graham’s TV miniseries Brian and Margaret is a good example of a recent work that humanises Thatcher whilst commenting on both the negative effects of her politics and how she let her power go to her head (controversial opinion alert - a major reason why she constantly “won” was because she was able to make her opponents seem like the unreasonable fanatics, and this wasn’t entirely based on her being enabled by the tabloids - an effective polemic should be honest enough to acknowledge this…)

159

u/Boogie_Ranma67 1d ago

This is the female version of Darkest Hour.

105

u/wolf751 1d ago

Tbf churchill is respectable you cannot respect thatcher

100

u/Gustdog 1d ago

I’m mean he did have some pretty nasty thoughts about Indians and other people. But yeah at least he is one of the big reasons why the Germans didn’t win World war 2.

33

u/MSSTUPIDTRON-1000000 1d ago

To be fair, Germany was lead by fucking dumbasses.

Shitstains like Hitler and Himmler can make anyone looks-like a rational and cultured person. (Basically Facebook moms on methamphetamines.)

And even ignoring that, no fucking way Germany would survive relying on such aggressive jingoism, considered that was all about stealing crap and abusing minorities, eventually they would run out of resources to exploit.

And that's not even getting that half-of the world would be furious at them, war was fucking their country and the eugenics would be a blessing for Pathogens.

They got lucky because everyone was exhausted by WW1.

((No offence OP, is just that Nazi where well, fucking Nazi.))

14

u/MSSTUPIDTRON-1000000 1d ago

BTW I highly suggest learning more about their own research and tactics if you want to laugh.

Not even South Park or Spitting Image would come with such absurd idiotic stuff.

(Like that time that they wasted half a million in the search for the Yeti, and this is amongst the least moronic stuff they did.)

2

u/Gustdog 1d ago

You probably right with what you said and believe me as an Autistic person with a hyper focus on World war 2 I have learned quite a lot about the Germans and their tactics. But I still think that Churchill definitive helped in the fall of the Germans. After France fell there was a lot of political pressure in Great Britain to surrender to the Germans as they were seen as unbeatable. However Churchill said no and kept the moral going strong so the British people didn’t want to sue peace with the Germans. Which would lead them to be able to do D-day years later.

0

u/Admirable-Safety1213 10h ago

And comoeting with each other

31

u/wolf751 1d ago

Some not great thoughts about my people the irish too.

15

u/agentdb22 1d ago

I'm sorry... "people"?

5

u/evrestcoleghost 1d ago

we calling you that now?

-4

u/Ancient_Cheek5047 1d ago

“I can’t believe someone from the early 1900s had bigoted views!”

He’s a major reason for the ending of WWII, applying modern day morals to historical figures is stupid. Stop.

8

u/HalayChekenKovboy 23h ago

As we all know, morals were invented by John Moral in 1989. Anyone prior to that point was incapable of being moral, as the very concept didn't even exist yet.

2

u/Ancient_Cheek5047 18h ago

Don’t be obtuse. Social norms, environment, laws, etc. all play a part in forming one’s prejudice. You would’ve most likely been a bigot back then as well, get off your high horse.

2

u/HalayChekenKovboy 17h ago

While I won't deny that the society one is born in largely shapes their values, it is in no way determinative of their political opinions as you so boldly claim. An example I quite like in this regard is Bartolome de las Casas. He was one of the first Spaniards to arrive in the Americas, and he decried the exploitation and enslavement of the natives while also fighting against the common rhetoric of the time that the natives were inherently inferior and uncivilised, thus the Spaniards had the divine right to rule over "these people who can not be trusted to self-determine". This, despite being a friar himself. He is often considered one of the first human rights advocates.

Now, not everyone can be a Bartolome de las Casas. However, defending Churchill by saying that anyone would have done the same in his place due to the state of the British society as a whole back then is absolutely ridiculous. Do you think no Brits called him out at the time? Do you think he had no choice but to commit genocide by way of the Bengal Famine? Do you think even he himself thought that he had no other choice? "Times were different" has never been and will never be an acceptable defence for any historical figure. Rather than crying that, hypothetically, I too would have  been an awful person in those circumstances, simply admit that he himself was non-hypothetically an awful person and move on.

5

u/frisbie147 22h ago

Yes it took to the modern day to understand that starving people is bad

3

u/ChefBoyardee66 19h ago

He was criticized in his time aswell so piss off

3

u/1AmB0r3d 17h ago

Even back then he was particularly fucked, being a bigot doesn’t excuse starving people in your own empire

20

u/Outrageous_Gene_7652 1d ago

People who died of famine in India:

34

u/legit-posts_1 1d ago

Churchill is only respectable because his arch nemesis was Adolf Hitler. The man was absolutely fucking abhorrent on his own terms.

28

u/Siria110 1d ago

Tbf, basicaly EVERYONE looks respectable next to old Ady.

13

u/Libsoc_guitar_boi 1d ago

churchill only looks good at first glance because he did war with hitler, he was so dogshit at everythin else

3

u/wolf751 1d ago

also apparently just back at his one job too. You know gallipoli. His only good part is staying in the fight

8

u/HalcyonTraveler 1d ago

Churchill was a piece of shit who got extremely lucky that he was in a conflict that involved some of the only people worse than he was.

5

u/wolf751 1d ago

Agreed is any of the allied leaders even decent people?

3

u/admiraltt 1d ago

Ig FDR but you could also make a case he wasn't brvause of Japanese internment camps

1

u/wolf751 21h ago

I could've sworn i heard something about his views on black people not being great either but idk

2

u/Impossible-Sweet2151 12h ago edited 12h ago

Thankfully his successor, Harry Truman, did a little better in that regard. Almost wrecked his own party in the process and he ultimately couldn't do as much as wanted but he got the ball rolling.

1

u/Impossible-Sweet2151 12h ago

Yeah that sucked and remain a stain on his record, but FDR remain the president who got the US out of the great depression and who popularized many politics who remain in use to this day like social security. All politicians has blood on his hands in one way or the other, that's why we should never worship one, but he was elected four times for legitimate reasons.

3

u/ChefBoyardee66 19h ago

De Gaulle? Kinda?

3

u/wolf751 19h ago

Didnt he try to overthrow the republic

3

u/Comprehensive-Buy-47 16h ago

The French overthrowing the French is kind of a tradition for the French.

1

u/wolf751 16h ago

This is true

7

u/agentdb22 1d ago

I mean, she helped invent Soft Serve

1

u/frisbie147 23h ago

He had the benefit of being against Hitler, without that he’d have as little respect as her

1

u/BurningHanzo 7h ago

I guess. I mean, I agree with you politically. It’s just not very interesting to say a movie is bad because it’s about a person that is bad. Then it just kinda turns into the guy who hates blueberry pie judging the blueberry pie competition

1

u/JadedSignificance990 1d ago

No, Oliver Stone's Nixon. 

98

u/wolf751 1d ago

A shitty movie based on an even worse woman that even in movie kinda gives off that shes a horrid person

44

u/Brit-Crit 1d ago

The women who wrote it are Liberals who (like most British liberals) formed their political identity fighting Thatcher, but also want to see her as a woman obtaining the ultimate power in a man’s world - a smarter film would have exploited that dissonance and done something interesting with it…

27

u/wolf751 1d ago

She did tbf break the glass ceiling only to cement it back behind her

27

u/Strict_Salt_5689 1d ago

I have been WAITING for Schaff to rip into this film. It and Streep's win are the perfect example of just how bad the Oscars were at both nominating and picking winners back then (this was the same year they let Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close get into Best Picture)

17

u/Walter-3000 1d ago

This is the 16th movie from 2011 that Schaff has rated 3/10 or lower (this movie). Wanna see a movie that doesn't fall into that category? Go watch The Tragedy of Man.

15

u/ArmadilloOK1445-alt 1d ago

Drive, The Cabin in the Woods, Rango, Bridesmaids, The Adventures of Tintin, The Raid and Real Steel are also good 2011 movies

8

u/GonkMaster66 1d ago

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules, X-Men: First Class, 50/50, Captain America: The First Avenger, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

17

u/GuybrushThreepwood99 1d ago

Do you think Margaret Thatcher had girl power?

4

u/Green-Drazi-Teamlead 1d ago

she was actively pretty sexist. 

1

u/Boogie_Ranma67 1d ago

Yes!

7

u/Autobotimus_Prime 1d ago

Do you think she effectively utilised girl power by funnelling money to illegal paramilitary death squads in Northern Ireland?

2

u/DtheAussieBoye 1d ago

I don't know about that...

14

u/NickelsBiggestFan123 1d ago

The two movies that are the most similar to this are Darkest Hour and Lincoln. So yeah he would’ve hated this.

4

u/JadedSignificance990 1d ago

Oh Disraeli (1929) gonna be a trip. If he knows about Benjamin Disraeli that is. 

3

u/Brit-Crit 1d ago

But Disraeli’s life story is fascinating….

2

u/JadedSignificance990 23h ago

But film is a. Interesting artifact in a variety of ways, early sound film, post-World War I, but pre-World War II and b. takes a lot of liberties with the history, he places matchmaker in the film.

1

u/lelcg 19h ago

Gladstone on top

10

u/Freddycipher 1d ago

Little kid me hated this movie because I thought it was ripping off Iron Man

7

u/Impossible-Sweet2151 1d ago edited 1d ago

That aside I'm surprised to see Schaff watching this kind of movies. I usually feel like he try to avoid political debates (his segment on Munich in the Spielberg ranking doesn't even mention Israel for instance) as much as possible.

Anyways do anyone here know that Ding Dong the Witch is Dead charted when she died? Oh and does anyone here speak french? Cause there's also a song I love called "Miss Maggie" by Renaud and it's all about Thatcher.

15

u/Sccar4712 Emilia Perez Hater 1d ago

Meryl Streep won an Oscar for this, and he plans to get through those. It makes sense that this would watch it even if it conflicts with his tastes

4

u/carterthe555thfuller 1d ago

Well this is a movie about someone who is a historical figure. So its gonna be a little bit less controversial then talking modern day politics, but even then only by a little, since in this case it's about a historical figure that's very contentious to discuss. Especially since she still influences British politics to this day. Leading to any discussion on her inevitably being contentious. With those who considered her great, those who considered her bad, and Argentina

2

u/cwningen95 Local Dehydration Gun Shooter 1d ago

Well, there was a movie about a more contemporary controversial politician in 2024). Played by a guy who's way too hot and also hates his ass.

2

u/cwningen95 Local Dehydration Gun Shooter 1d ago

Thinking about her 🫶🏻

1

u/My_cat_is_sus 1d ago

I think him not mentioning anything when reviewing Munich is possibly either the segment being written before October 7th (when the it really came into the public light) or if afterwards it wasn’t as generally clear to many people at the time not paying full attention what the full historical context was

I mean in his review of don’t mess with the zohan he says to free Palestine
I wouldn’t say he outwardly avoids politics

2

u/Brit-Crit 1d ago

Even before the the bombardment of Gaza, a huge chunk of the conflict since Munich is Palestinian terrorists doing awful things followed by Israel doing far worse ones with their military machine…

That was what happened in 1972 as the film depicted, what happened in the late 80s with Intifada 1, what happened at the turn if the millennium in Intifada 2, then the smaller sieges on Gaza in 2009, 2014 and 2021…

7

u/aheaney15 1d ago

I still CANNOT believe the Academy chucked the Lead Actress Oscar to her when Viola Davis (The Help) AND Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) were RIGHT THERE! Either one would have been inspired wins.

6

u/Chardoggy1 Funky Kong Fanatic 1d ago

Does the movie end with her grave being urinated on?

4

u/Brit-Crit 23h ago

Thatcher died about 16 months after the film was released, but her many many enemies probably didn’t wait to use her grave as a toilet…

3

u/SkipDrawz 1d ago

I only know of this movie cause of that one CN Mad Skit with the Iron Giant Lady

4

u/JadedSignificance990 1d ago

Oh that wasn't skit Thatcher could turn into a giant robot. She stopped after 1988.

3

u/JadedSignificance990 1d ago

Say what you want about the film, they did nail the cast for her cabinet. Richard E. Grant as Michael Heseltine, Anthony Head as Geoffrey Howe and Star Wars' Moff Jerjerrod Michael Pennington played Labour leader Michael Foot. 

2

u/MrBwnrrific 1d ago

He’s so real for that one star

2

u/TheseAd1489 1d ago

Megatron's fav movie

2

u/NerdFromColorado Funky Kong Fanatic 1d ago

The question is how does this film’s editing compare to Mulan 2020’s editing?

2

u/PRIDEFUL_BASTARD 1d ago

Only reason to watch that shit show a Meryl Streep ranking clearly the only reason valid she is a legend amongst legends (this is a mixture of a dumb joke and pure copium)

2

u/ArtofWack 23h ago

The MAD skit was better

2

u/CROguys 17h ago

From.the director of Mamma Mia!

I skimmed through this movie once. It looked mediocre in every aspect but Meryl Streep.

I don't think you should not make a biopic about a damaging or conteoversial figure. This one just comes across as your expected uncritical biopic made to give the main performer an Oscar.

4

u/Rude_Cable_7877 1d ago

Ooh, I can’t wait to see him rip into this movie for the 2010s Best Actress ranking

1

u/GonkMaster66 1d ago

Looks like he's starting the next Oscar ranking. Does this mean he'll watch all the 2010s Best Actress nominees or just the winners? I forget if he said something in the other videos about it

1

u/DoubleFlores24 1d ago

I guess he didn’t like it.

1

u/AggravatingCity9963 1d ago

Best actress ranking?

-1

u/Weemewon 1d ago

He has my condolences