Iris (2001)

"The strongest ensemble in recent memory."

"Intrigues and devastates."

"A vibrant, almost palpitating piece of cinema."

"There's precious little to think about here."

"Dench is a marvel... the physicality of her performance is all too real."

"Yes, that's Oscar knocking on Dench's door."

"Tender, unflinching, raw and wonderful."

"A fine cast and production."

"All the players (including Hugh Bonneville as the student Bayley) are ardent, all the camera work thoughtful."

"Rarely does a movie feel as leaden-footed..."

"Dench and Winslet inhabit the role of Iris with such intensity it's hard to take your eyes off them."

"Dench and Winslet are a riveting matchup."

"It leaves out huge gaps of Murdoch's life -- the whole centre of it really, when she published all of her important books."

"It's good, but not great -- despite the heights to which Dench and Broadbent drive it. But those heights are lofty, the pain still stings."

"Iris glows with rightness and convinces us we're sharing its characters' understanding that when the books and the memory go, love can remain."

"The movie fails to do (Iris Murdoch) justice--simplifies the life of one whose work was open to such human complexities."