A visceral, haunting film, Kristen Stewart is a newly-minted Oscar nominee and does her career best work as Diana Spencer, a woman trapped in a suffocating marriage to a man whose heart longs for another, upset and stifled by the rigorous scheduling and proper procedure.
Diana's a creative spirit and here, not only does she continue to purge herself but also wears her assigned dresses out of order. And yet, the latter seems to be a greater offense. She's criticized by her husband (Jack Farthing) for meeting 'someone' while he is clearly doing the same thing. It is obvious that Diana remains in her marriage because of her sons, whom she so clearly adores and her trusted dresser, Maggie (Sally Hawkins, stellar in her small role) who feels that Diana needs actual love, which isn't completely incorrect as she keeps having flashbacks to her apparently happy childhood (though in reality, it wasn't as blissful as it appears her) and Anne Boleyn, beheaded for merely being accused of having an affair and the similarities between the women are blatantly obvious.
Still, the film is thin on plot, designed as a character study of Diana, trying to show her in a different light, which it doesn't quite accomplish (thanks The Crown!), but it is still interesting, mainly because it is a visual masterpiece and the score matches Diana's emotion, and sometimes even physical motions beat for beat. And this film dares let us believe that the story could have had a different ending, if Diana decided to leave Charles and regain her former identity, never looking back. You will enjoy the destination just as much as the ending. Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Jack Farthing was married to two Oscar nominees in 2021, Stewart in this film and Jessie Buckley in The Lost Daughter. His role is unremarkable in both films, unfortunately for him.
-I wonder if the character of Maggie was real.
-I can't believe that they just let Diana wander off to her childhood home, in her evening gown, no less.
-The amount of food prepared for the royal family is obscene.
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