Grade: A
“Iris” is a quiet kind of film that slips in and out of theaters before anyone knows it’s there. But the power and the beauty of it resonate with those lucky enough to have seen it. Word of mouth starts moving through the movie-going populous like a shock-wave, but by the time everyone starts looking for it, the film has already finished its run.
“Iris” unceremoniously danced its way through theaters across America in 2001 and barely caused a whisper at the time. Then, suddenly, the Academy Award nominations came out, and Kate Winslet, Judi Dench and Jim Broadbent all received nods for their work in the film.
Suddenly, everyone wanted to see this movie, and no one could find it. Now, the studio has wisely decided to re-release it in major markets and play it in smaller markets that never received it to begin with. Therefore, “Iris” is finally at a theater near you in Madison — the Hilldale. Don’t miss it.
The languidly elegant film is the story of renowned novelist Iris Murdoch, who is played by Dame Judi Dench (“Shakespeare in Love”) as an older woman and by Kate Winslet (“Titanic”) in flash-back sequences of her wild youth.
“Iris” follows the love affair between Murdoch and intellectual John Bayley (Jim Broadbent, “Moulin Rouge”). The story is true, and the screenplay is based on Bayley’s memoir of Murdoch, “Iris: A Memoir and Elegy for Iris.” As a young scholar, he was instantly enamored with the vibrant Iris and became entirely devoted to spending his life with her. Her love for him is matched, however, by her love for words and adventure, often of a sexual nature.
As they grow old together, tragedy strikes in the form of Alzheimer’s. Iris is diagnosed as her ability to read and write begins to unexpectedly degenerate. Bayley has spent his whole life being taken care of by Iris and is virtually a smiling shadow of her. Suddenly, he is forced to take care of her.
Robbed of her ability to express herself in writing, Iris begins to retreat into her mind, and we watch her whole sordid history play itself out in her memory. The film’s Oscar nominations are well deserved, as these three actors turn out a performance of striking magnitude.
Winslet portrays the young writer as brilliant, charming and devilishly dangerous. Dench maintains that fire in her eyes even as her body and her mind begin to fall apart. Winslet and Dench even match their expressions and gestures to be congruent throughout the film.
Meanwhile, Broadbent plays Bayley as a lovesick puppy of a man who lives and breathes for Iris. When her world shatters, his does as well and, try as he might to hold them together, he cannot.
The film is shot beautifully by British director Richard Eyre. His resume consists mainly of films for TV, with several Shakespearean adaptations among them. He makes the transition to feature film smoothly. Eyre understands drama, and he has a keen eye for performance. His characters are always center stage and he does nothing to distract from their often subtle and stirring portrayals. He lets the camera sit still and watch the characters relating, or he quietly follows them in and out of rooms. As a director, he somehow makes the outside world seem huge and terrifying, while making the Bayley/Murdoch house intensely claustrophobic.
In addition to this, Eyre makes simple and typically ignored things unmistakably beautiful. A shot of a stone falling through water or sliding off of a pillow becomes unspeakably powerful in his context.
In many ways, that is an apt description of “Iris” as well. What may have been a simple and typically ignored film is too stunning to turn away from. The combination of amazing acting, eloquent scripting and lovely cinematography makes this film something worth seeking out.