This blog post examines whether the principles Margaret Thatcher upheld throughout her life and her resolute decisions truly constituted the conditions of genuine leadership, as depicted in the film The Iron Lady. It also delves deeply into the impact and significance of her choices.
The film ‘The Iron Lady’, chronicling the life of Margaret Thatcher—the UK’s first female Prime Minister and the West’s first female head of government—opens with a scene of her buying milk at a convenience store. This scene contrasts sharply with her upright and resolute image leading many male politicians and governing Britain, instead showing the daily life of an elderly woman with limited mobility and frailty. Now, over 20 years after stepping down as Prime Minister, she remains a frail elderly woman, yet she is still remembered as a legendary figure not only in British politics but also in European and global political history. Margaret Thatcher, who brought significant change to her own country, Britain, during her long 11-year tenure as Conservative Party leader and Prime Minister, and who also led the world towards the end of the Cold War, is counted among Britain’s most respected Prime Ministers, alongside Winston Churchill and Lloyd George.
The film unfolds as Margaret Thatcher, battling dementia at age 86, reflects on her life while struggling to escape the haunting presence of her late husband, Denis Thatcher. By showcasing the major events of her life, from the moment she was influenced by her father in childhood to the moment her political career ended, it effectively portrays what kind of politician and Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was, while also revealing what kind of wife and mother she was. The film ‘The Iron Lady’ conveys to the audience what kind of leader she was by simultaneously depicting her principled nature, living by a strict moral compass, and her stubborn, uncompromising stance of never yielding on what she believed to be right.
Margaret Thatcher’s strict, principled approach to life was heavily influenced by her father, Alfred Roberts. In the film, Alfred, a grocer and Mayor of Grantham, firmly emphasizes to his daughter that she must not be swayed by others but live by her convictions and principles. This teaching becomes the driving force behind Margaret Thatcher’s life, lived with unwavering conviction within her strict principles.
This image of her as rigid and principled is depicted throughout the film. During Prime Minister Heath’s tenure, when frequent strikes by the trade unions—which effectively controlled Britain—brought the entire country to a state of uncontrollable chaos, Margaret Thatcher, then Secretary of State for Education, refused to compromise and passionately argued her case among cabinet members. This scene highlights a woman fighting alone within a male-dominated cabinet, further emphasizing Margaret Thatcher’s principled nature. Indeed, within a few years after this incident, she became Prime Minister, resolved Britain’s trade union strike problem, and weakened the position of militant labor movements.
Her principled stance continued even after becoming Prime Minister. A prime example of this, and a crucial part of the film, is the Falklands War with Argentina. Margaret Thatcher asserted in her book The Management of the Nation that she would never compromise with anti-peace forces. This principle played a significant role in reclaiming the Falkland Islands, despite Britain’s poor economic situation at the time. The scene where she sheds tears upon hearing news of casualties during the war and writes a handwritten letter to the bereaved families also vividly shows a side of a war leader rarely seen in male prime ministers. Although criticized as an unnecessary war, she secured territorial sovereignty and gained high public trust, enabling her to accelerate the pace of governance.
However, her principled stance of pushing through what she believed to be right to the end also drew criticism for being stubborn and uncompromising. Protests against her radical reform policies were incessant, and the film’s depiction of demonstrators demanding her resignation vividly captures the atmosphere of the time. She overrode opposition from cabinet members to enforce her convictions, and this uncompromising stance ultimately led to the end of her political career, forcing her to resign as Prime Minister with a year remaining in her term. Although her radical reforms produced groundbreaking results for Britain, her uncompromising and inflexible governance style remains controversial.
Furthermore, her excessive passion for work strained her family relationships. Scenes like her leaving home without a glance at her children on the day she was elected to Parliament, or her family’s anger at her decision to run for party leader, depict how her deep commitment to her principles distanced her from her family. The film frequently shows her as an elderly woman with dementia, feeling guilt and compassion towards her family, effectively portraying her loneliness in having to choose between her principles for the nation and her family.
Just as many national leaders are not free from controversy over their methods, she too cannot escape the assessment that she was uncompromising in rebuilding Britain based on her principled convictions. However, her sincerity is palpable in the film’s final lines.
“All I wanted was to make a difference in the world. All I wanted was my children to grow up well and be happy, happier than I was certainly.”
The film ‘The Iron Lady’ transcends being merely a biographical portrait of Margaret Thatcher. It prompts audiences to reconsider the image, qualifications, and philosophy of a leader. It delivers a significant message to our society, which is grappling with what kind of leadership to aspire to and what to avoid.
