Critics Consensus

Critics Consensus: Streep Carries The Iron Lady

Plus, there are some solid limited openings and plenty of Certified Fresh films in theaters this week.

by | December 29, 2011 | Comments

Happy Holidays! This week at the movies brings no new wide releases, but we’ve got one hotly anticipated limited — The Iron Lady, starring Meryl Streep as former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. What do the critics have to say?

The Iron Lady

52%

Meryl Streep’s playing Margaret Thatcher — sounds like The Iron Lady is bound for awards season glory, right? Well, the critics say Streep does a great job with the role — it’s the movie around her that doesn’t quite know what it wants to say. The Iron Lady delves into the personal and political life of the pioneering and polarizing British prime minister on the eve of the 1982 Falklands War — a period of turmoil for a woman who altered the landscape of British politics. The pundits say Streep is terrific as always — and worth the price of admission — but the rest of the movie is strangely unfocused and lacking in insight. (Check out this week’s Total Recall, in which we count down Streep’s best-reviewed films.)

Also opening this week in limited release:

  • El sicario: Room 164, a documentary about a hitman for Mexican drug cartels, is at 100 percent.

  • A Separation, a drama about the dissolution of an Iranian couple’s marriage, is at 100 percent.

  • Pariah, a coming-of-age drama about an inner-city teenager who’s in the process of coming out of the closet, is at 97 percent.

  • Chico & Rita, an animated musical about a longtime affair between two Cuban musicians, is at 95 percent.

  • Angels Crest, starring Jeremy Piven and Thomas Dekker in a drama about the impact of a child’s death on a tight-knit small town, is at 33 percent.

And don’t forget, a bunch of last week’s releases — Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol, The Adventures of Tintin, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, War Horse, and Pina — are Certified Fresh.