Spencer Movie Review

Spencer (2021)

Rent Spencer on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: Steven Knight
Directed by: Pablo Larraín
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Timothy Spall, Sean Harris, Sally Hawkins
Rated: R
Watch the trailer

Plot
During her Christmas holidays with the royal family at the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, England, Diana Spencer, struggling with mental health problems, decides to end her decade-long marriage to Prince Charles.

Verdict
This certainly strives for mood. As a movie, it's long and  drawn out with one idea that it continues to circle. The question is where does Diana fit in this world? I like what this movie wants to do, and what it actually does, way more than I like this movie. The length dulls the impact as this explores Diana's mental state.
It depends.

Review
The opening text, "a fable from a true tragedy," lets you know this is more impression than fact. It's clear this is aiming for something more artistic than a straight drama. Diana (Kristen Stewart) is an outsider not matter where she is. She's a Royal to the average person, but she doesn't quite fit into the royal family. The only time we see her happy is when she's with her children William and Harry. It's clear she's not happy to be at this retreat, irritated of silly royal traditions and upset they refused to turn up the heat in the home. With all the pressure of being in the royal family, she's also dealing with a philandering husband.

Kristen Stewart plays Diana

Spencer really wants to drive that home, frequently going for a horror vibe to manifest how uncomfortable Diana is in the royal home. Her feelings are something visceral and scary. Not content with just mood, this also use the dialog to reinforce the point. Diana's lines sound like something written. There are so many metaphors and perspectives on her life. This frequently sounds like she's reading a diary

Nothing really happens. This establishes her mood, and then it remains focused on that point. Nothing more happened than what I imagined this would be before i started. The only nice moments are with her kids.There's an interesting play with tense, how the royal family is past and present simultaneously. It never evolves, and that stifles Diana.

This captures the turmoil of her emotions, but there isn't much past that and this movie is a bit long for this kind of story. She's unhappy and trapped. I get it, but Diana continues to monologue about her unhappiness. This is a window into her world, but the movie needs something more to drive the plot. That or to cut down the length. Kristen Stewart delivers a solid performance, and that's almost in spite of this movie.