Given the constant stories about how few powerful, interesting lead roles Hollywood will give to women, it seems insanely lucky that we're about to get not one but two biopics about famous female political leaders. The higher-profile one, The Iron Lady, sees Meryl Streep bringing her typical chameleonic acting skills to the role of Margaret Thatcher-- that one hasn't really been seen by anyone yet, and comes to theaters later this year. But the more interesting one may very well turn out to be The Lady, a biopic starring Michelle Yeoh as Aung San Suu Kyi, a leader of the democratic movement in the military-controlled Burma who spent 15 years under house arrest before he release last year.

The facts are a little dizzying to sift through, and require understanding the Burmese politics and also the iron strength it takes for a woman to leave a cozy home in England, stay in her native Burma and sacrifice everything for her beliefs. So why not check out the movie's new trailer, which debuted at Yahoo and is also embedded below. Michelle Yeoh's already impressive performance will explain things better than I possibly could.


Directed by The Fifth Element and Leon: The Professional's Luc Besson, you can bet The Lady will focus on the action and the gun-powered drama behind any political revolution. But early word from the movie's premiere at the Toronto Film Festival suggests there's more going on here too, and that the performances from Yeoh and David Thewlis as her husband bring an extra element here. The Lady is getting a release this fall in time for Oscar consideration, but it's an open question as to whether new distributor Cohen Media Group can muster up the funds and immense manpower that an Oscar campaign requires these days. Either way they'll drum up attention for the movie, which looks plenty worthy of our support.