Brit Flicks

Each year, the Husband and I try to see any film that is likely to be in the running for an academy award, which means that we spend the first few months of each new year seeing movies.  Viewing films in DC is a particularly social experience because that the town has only two major theaters (not counting the few independent gems that we also enjoy) that all of its dwellers cram into on the weekends.  Given my propensity to be fashionably late to everything -- including movies -- we have taken to ordering tickets on Fandango.com.  Even then, however, we are generally some of the last people in the theatre, which means that we usually settle for non-ideal seats.  This weekend was no exception -- but you wouldn't have known it because both movies that we saw were so enjoyable we quickly forgot that we were even sitting in undesirable seats.  We saw Iron Lady and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy -- both set in Britain and both paying homage to the Cold War.

Iron Lady is a tribute to Margaret Thatcher (played by Meryl Streep).  The film depicts an aging Thatcher struggling with dementia and flashes back to her rise to power and time as Prime Minister of Britain.  Some have criticized the film as dedicating too much time to present-day Thatcher and not featuring enough of her time as Prime Minister.  Others have found the film (which is less than 2 hours long) slow-moving at times.  I enjoyed the film and recommend it it Good Life Followers, but did wish that it had dedicated more time to  Thatcher in her years as Prime Minister.  I highly recommend seeing Iron Lady if for no other reason to see the truly phenomenal Streep play legendary Thatcher.  Streep is amazing in the role, which required depicting Thatcher over several decades.  I would not be surprised if Streep brings home another Oscar for her performance.

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is perhaps the best film -- in terms of its story line and plot -- that I have seen all year.   It was suspenseful, complex, and novel all at the same time.  Based on a 1974 spy novel by John le Carré, the film is a cold war thriller that follows one man's attempt to unveil a mole amidst British intelligence officers.  This is not a film for those who only half watch movies; it requires constant attention.  But, the pay off is well worth it.  The Husband and I particularly enjoyed that part of the film was set in Budapest (where we spent New Years Eve) and also enjoyed the scenes set in Istanbul and London.  The film was so intriguing that I started researching it when I got home from the movie-- leading me to find this helpful summary of the way in which the film mimics actual history.  You won't be disappointed if you see Tinker, Tailor -- It is a favorite.