Spencer Review

Diana, Princess of Wales was a woman who has had a lasting impact on the UK and the rest of the world. She has served as the subject matter of films and TV shows like The Queen and The Crown. Spencer offers an intimidate look at the tragic public figure.

It’s Christmas in 1991. Princess Diana’s (Kristen Stewart) marriage with Prince Charles (Jack Farthing) is about to end due to his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles. Diana must spend one final Christmas at Sandringham, a traditional event where she’s surrounded by enemies, a gossiping household, the ever-watchful Master of the Household to the Sovereign (Timothy Spall), and her deteriorating mental state.

Spencer opened with a statement saying ‘A fable based on a tragedy.’ The keyword is ‘fable’ because Spencer was not a blow-by-blow account of real events but more an interpretation. The aim of the filmmakers was to give audiences a sense of what it was like to live in the royal household and an inside into Diana’s mindset. The early scenes of the film were a testament to this because the film opened with a meticulous operation that had to be conducted for the arrival of the Royals and showed Diana getting lost on the way to Sandringham.

There was precision when the army and cooks arrived in Sandringham’s kitchens whilst there was a surreal quality when Diana went to a roadside café to get directions. It gave the film both a dreamlike and nightmarish quality as the film looks at this work of ritual. As Diana describes the Royal Family, there’s no future and the past and present were the same. It was a ridged world where there was a strict hierarchy and people must stick to a sudden way of things despite being in the modern world.

Diana was trapped in a gilded cage. She’s in a world of luxury, but she is isolated because she was stuck with the in-laws who hated her. Her marriage with Charles was falling apart, the media were circling, and Sandringham was a place of gossip, metaphors, and passive aggression. Despite the luxury of having expensive clothes, Diana was meant to stick to a strict regime. A mini-act of rebellion of wearing an outfit out of order caused a scandal amongst the Royals and the Household.

All these issues put a strain on Diana’s already fragile mental state. She was on the edge of a breakdown before she arrived at Sandringham. She goes up to a scarecrow and takes its jacket despite being late to the Estate. She suffered from bulimia and self-harm and the people around her did nothing to help her. Someone left Diana a biography of Anne Boleyn which Diana saw as a threat because Anne Boleyn was executed for having an affair when in reality her husband was having an affair. Diana suffers from hallucinations, and they get worse as the film progressed. Her own scene of reality disappears, culminating with a wonderful montage of Diana reflecting on her life. A moment where Diana sees Camilla Parker Bowles outside St Mary Magdalene Church it was ambiguous on whether she was accurately there or if it was in Diana’s mind.

Spencer required an actress on top form and Kristen Stewart delivered. The hair and make-up team and costume department did a great job making Stewart look like the Princess of Wales, but Stewart had to do most of the work. Diana was a tough role for any actor because of all the expectations of playing such a famous figure and play all the emotional issues she had. Stewart managed that by showing Diana was on the edge of a breakdown and the events at Sandringham was the final push. Despite all the mental strain Diana was shown to be a loving mother and there were some moments of humour. Stewart seems like she’s going to be a contender for an Oscar and that would be the perfect revenge against her online detractors.

Stewart was surrounded by a great cast. The most recognisable supporting actors were Timothy Spall, Sally Hawkins, and Sean Harris. Spall was the ever-watchful eye who made Diana’s life even worse. He spoke in a calm, authoritative manner, so typically British. Hawkins and Harris played the only characters who were friendly to Diana. Hawkins played the supportive dresser and Harris was the royal chef. Whilst Harris’ character was sympathetic to Diana a powerful little moment was when Diana went down to the kitchens to talk to him, and he had to warn the Princess anything she told him could be used as currency.

The casting director and make-up and costume teams did a great job with the actors playing the Royals. They all matched the recognisable features like the Duchess of York’s red hair. Jack Farthing and Jack Nielen had the most substantial roles as Prince Charles and Prince William. Nielen was a promising young performer and believable as a young boy who had to deal with his mother’s mental wobbles. Farthing matched Charles’ voice and he was shown to be the villain of the piece. But Farthing’s Charles was still capable of having moments of humanity like when he took William to his first pheasant hunt.

Spencer was a great mix of a character study and a look at the institution of the Royal Family. It was a film that had perfect acting, writing and direction.