Iris [DVD] [2002]

Of the performances, Kate Winslet is radiance and intelligence personified and is absolutely believable as the gifted young author that Iris Murdoch was. Hers, incidentally is the most unsympathetic and verbose character-stretch, what with her wolfish appetite for men and words, but Winslet's luminous bare-all interpretaton has a feverish, unpretentious energy to it that makes it so compulsively watchable.

Hugh Bonneville as the younger Bayley [Murdoch's fiancee and later, her husband] hasn't got the best lines, but makes sure that his stammer makes every line he utters, momentous.

But of course, Iris is a freewheeling showcase of Judi Dench's intelligence whose performance as the Alzheimer-stricken Murdoch is so heart-felt and sincere, that you can almost touch her. Having worked with patients of Alzheimer's myself, I was absolutely shocked as to how much Judi's performance [right from her body language and her slow but definite detachment from the real world] struck home. Be it the last scene where she swings in the elderly home corridor or her reactions to Blair's speech on television or even the way she reacts when her last book is out-- each of those scenes will forever haunt me as some of the most honest moments I have encountered on screen.

Jim Broadbent is just as luminous as Dench and the scenes where he searches madly for Judi as she suddenly disappears or even his painful, frustrated outbursts are examples of what fine acting is all about. His chemistry with Dench [notice the scene where Iris tugs onto the tail of his sweater] is genuine and is what makes the film's message ring long after its over.

The script's brilliant, very taut and not even a single minute of the 86 mins running time is wasted in obscure sub-plots. The background music's suitably soothing and therapeutic complementing the film's mellowed tone and the way in which the build up of Murdoch's illness comes alive on screen [the very first scenes where she struggles with simple words to the scene where she suddenly forgets the thread while answering a question on a TV interview were hair-raising] as well as the way this tension is balanced with the screenplay meshing in her radiant youthful days all through... makes for a very thoughtful viewing.

The ironies between the two phases of Iris' life jolt you [esp. her quotes like "We have encountered all forms of goodness in its purest form before we were born, which is why we are drawn to it, unconsciously all the time" and "There is only one freedom of any importance, freedom of the mind"] but ultimately, the film's message about how exhausting a mental illness could be [both for the sufferer and the people around him/her] and how strong can a relationship be, is both grounding and fascinating.

It made me appreciate my existence all the more... hope it does something similar for all those who decide to watch it.

PS: The DVD, however, doesn't sport any worthwile extras which is quite disappointing for a film so critically acclaimed [atleast a behind-the-scenes featurette would have done some good] and other than a short commentary on Alzheimer's, the extras are as good as nonexistent.

Directed by Richard Eyre, who converted John Bayley's book, A Memoir and Elegy for Iris, into the screenplay, the film honors Iris, John Bayley, and the love that survived even Alzheimer's disease. Judi Dench not only looks like Iris Murdoch, but also endows her with fierce independence, a curiosity about the meaning of life, and a strong will, characteristics which served Iris well, even in her decline. Jim Broadbent, who won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar, shows his love for her at the same time that he becomes enormously frustrated at his helplessness in dealing with her decline.

Alternating between present and past, director Eyre develops innumerable visual parallels, showing Murdoch as a wild young girl (passionately played by Kate Winslett), uninhibitedly exploring every aspect of life, with Dench repeating similar scenes (such as the swimming scenes) late in life. The young John Bayley (Hugh Bonneville) plays his role so close in style to Broadbent that except for the obvious age differences, they could well be the same person, both blushing on cue. These four brilliant actors are completely successful in merging time frames to create two complete characters.

The obvious symbolism and deliberate parallels between the early and late lives of Iris and John Bayley will not escape any viewer, making the sad changes in Iris's mind even more agonizing to watch, particularly for anyone who has faced Alzheimer's with a loved one. As Iris herself observes, "I feel as if I'm sailing into darkness." Beautifully filmed by Roger Pratt, the exteriors, including the water scenes, show the vastness of the world that Iris loved to explore, while the interiors show her claustrophobic confinement and the robbing of her soul. Not an easy film to watch, it is nevertheless a brilliant achievement celebrating the endurance of love, even in the face of Alzheimer's disease. Mary Whipple

Admittedly, there are the weepy moments when Iris adamantly vainly refuses to give in to this disease. There are the struggles with herself and her lover. The literary metaphors and ironies are abundant ("There is only one freedom of any importance, freedom of the mind") and the visual ones are somewhat cliché. Regardless, this is a fascinating work of acting by some incredible talents of our age. It's not always upbeat, but it makes you appreciate what you have and how little it takes to be happy.