Kristen Stewart Gives an Immaculate Performance in ‘Spencer’

Kristen Stewart is no stranger to playing enigmas and muses, but in Spencer she’s catapulted herself to an entirely new level of artistic prowess.

Spencer opens with this eerie warning for Pablo Larraín’s haunting Princess Diana biopic that feels more like a ghost story than a period drama. Set in 1991, Spencer tells the story of Diana’s unraveling over the Christmas holiday at Sandringham Estate at the height of her divorce rumors with Prince Charles. As Christmas Eve celebrations are underway, we glimpse a cautionary sign hanging in the estate’s world class kitchen, “Keep noise to a minimum. They can hear you.” While the royal family filters in; Diana is nowhere to be found. She’s running late, zipping through the countryside in her Porsche, completely lost in a place she once knew as home. 

It’s fair to say that Princess Diana is having a moment, even from beyond the grave. Twenty-four years after her tragic death, her fashion, life and legacy are a continual source of worldwide inspiration. As a huge fan of The Crown, I was thrilled for Emma Corin when she received critical acclaim for her sensitive portrayal of Diana. 

Recently, Elizabeth Diebecki (Tenet) nearly broke the internet when photos of her wearing Spencer’s iconic “revenge dress” surfaced while shooting Crown’s fifth season. After receiving high praise upon its international release tour, Spencer continues to gather Oscar-buzz and I won’t be surprised if I see Kristen Stewart collect an Academy Award in 2022. 

Kristen Stewart is no stranger to playing enigmas and muses, but in Spencer she’s catapulted herself to an entirely new level of artistic prowess. From her golden feathered bob to her stately stride, Stewart’s portrayal is a work of art to behold. While the resemblance isn’t uncanny, she captures the untamed, fiery quality of Princess Diana that inspired so much of the public’s adoration for her. Stewart’s years of playing the mystifying Bella Swan in Twilight were the perfect preparation for inhabiting Larraín’s dreary world in Spencer that feels like the Upside-Down version of a royal fairy tale. 

We follow Diana through three tumultuous days of Christmas celebrations with her in-laws, beholden to family traditions that feel more suffocating than jolly. Spencer is kept company by her doting dresser Maggie played with subtle care by Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water) and kind head chef (Sean Harris). However, with hawk-eyed Major Gregory (Timothy Spall) and a haunting figment of Anne Boleyn lurking in every corner, Larraín takes us on a journey into Diana’s melancholy nightmare. While Spencer’s interpretation of Diana’s inner world and eventual unraveling is nearly unbearable to watch, mainly due to her progressive bulimia and self-abandon, it’s hard to look away. We know that even though the film is a fable, it’s based on truth.

The creative team behind Spencer is an international powerhouse: a Chilean director, an English composer, and a French cinematographer. After his biopic Jackie starring Natalie Portman received high praise, Larraín was the perfect choice to direct Spencer. Composer Johnny Greenwood (Phantom Thread, Radiohead) created a flawless unsettling score for Spencer, intermingling deconstructed orchestral strings and jazz. Jacqueline Durran (Little Women) masterfully executed the entire costume design, transporting us back to Diana’s chic style that tells a story all on its own. 

Cinematographer Claire Mathon (Portrait of a Lady on Fire) intimately captured the world Spencer, taking us behind the curtain of the luxurious yet stuffy world of royalty and inside the traumatized heart of Diana. I loved her use of imagery when Diana walks along a riverbank, her reflection in a seemingly haunted underworld matching her step for step. This follows an impassioned scene with Prince Charles where he tells Diana there must be “two of her”: one for the people and one in private. I hope to see more projects from this team of creatives, as their artistic marriage in Spencer was truly one of the most exquisite collaborations I’ve seen on screen.

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