Original-Cin Q&A: Pablo Larrain Talks About His 'Upside Down Fairy Tale' Diana movie Spencer
Director Pablo Larraín is back in the spotlight with his new movie, Spencer, yet another personal glimpse into an iconic woman’s nightmare.
The Chilean filmmaker, who gave us an experiential look at Jacqueline Kennedy with Jackie, now gives us his perspective on Princess Diana with Kristen Stewart in the lead role.
The film follows her over the course of the 1991 Christmas holiday when she decides to leave Charles.
Our Bonnie Laufer spoke with Pablo Larrain about why he was so invested in telling what he calls, “this upside down fairy-tale.”
CLICK HERE to read Jim Slotek’s TIFF piece on Kristen Stewart’s In Conversation With… Spencer session.
CLICK HERE to read Jim Slotek’s Spencer review.
A princess alone, Kristen Stewart as Diana.
ORIGINAL-CIN: There's no doubt Princess Diana was and still is one of the most talked-about and fascinating women of the last century. What it was it about her that made you come up with this story and tackle her in this way?
PABLO LARRAIN: It's a very good question and it’s a hard answer because there were many things.
She is such an incredible part of the culture and so mysterious at the same time. We think we know a lot about her, but I really think that we don't, and that's part of the thing that makes us more curious about her.
Director Pablo Larrain
I thought that we had the chance to make a movie about this woman and mother who was able to get through a lot of problems and defeat them, find her own identity and walk out of that house and her marriage. Of course, we know the truth, which happened later in 1997, but this focuses on being able to find herself again. I think I was able to convey the feeling that she was loved and wanting to reconnect with herself and others.
O-C: She was such a tortured soul but first and foremost her kids were the most important thing in her life. I loved that this was shown in the film and we got to see how important they were to her.
How easily did Kristen bond with the two boys who played Harry and William? There's a great scene when they're playing together, where she's the military Captain and the boys are the soldiers. It really gave me insight into her, whether it was true or not.
LARRAIN. Well, we will never now of course. But what we do know, and what was relevant for the movie from the very beginning, was the presence of the kids.
As we were making the movie, usually actors have to go back home, but we were in lock-down for most of the time and we were in hotels and places like that.
So the kids were around, so often they would come to set when they didn't have to be there and just hung out with everyone. They got on very well with Kristen and she was great with them too.
I really wanted to get across that we were also making a movie about motherhood. I thought about my own mother, and I understood many things about my own life. I'm a father, too. And I tried to express through the film the relationship that builds between parents and children.
I think that you're right. I think for her, the most relevant thing was always kids. There was something very relevant and beautiful about the scene that you mentioned. It showed her playful side, she could let her guard down with the kids, and be a kid with them and not be judged.
O-C: When the film was initially announced, I heard that Kristin Stewart was playing Diana. I was like, ‘Really? Okay, interesting.’ Why did you choose her?
LARRAIN: Whoa, do you have a few hours? Many reasons. I could tell you, just because it felt right, which is probably the most honest and pure answer.
But I can also tell you I think the more we know about Diana, the less we know. I think she was an incredibly mysterious person and that's part of the reason why I was so attracted to her and who she was.
PROUDLY SUPPORTS ORIGINAL-CIN
After seeing many of Kristen’s more recent roles, I was confident that she was connected to Diana in some way. I knew she would be able to nail down the look and accent. But it was the connection of mystery and vulnerability that really came through.
There's a point in the movie when the audience is seeing the world through her eyes. We are inside of her and we're sharing the world with her. But at the same time there's something that she's experiencing that you don't completely understand, so the audience is in a way invited to be part of her experience. Kristen creates a very mysterious thing that's more attractive and magnetic, and that’s what I was looking for.
O-C: I would expect there would be a lot of challenges making this film, but we all know that Diana was a fashion icon. You had over a hundred or so costumes, all replicas of what she actually wore. A costume designer's dream I would think.
LARRAIN: Yes, wow. t was challenging and fascinating but so much fun.
I personally loved working on that part of the film. I think that fashion can be an art form and I think that she knew that. Diana had incredible taste and when you look back at pictures she was incredibly bold when it came to choosing some of her outfits.
She truly created a persona from just wearing some of those clothes. My costume designer had a field day and it was so much fun, not only recreating some of those clothes but seeing Kristen in them was a joy. It was just so beautiful to choose the colors contrast, the textured fabrics - it was a highlight for sure.
O-C: Now that you have given us two films about very iconic women, Jackie Kennedy Onassis and Princess Diana, who in your opinion was more complex?
LARRAIN: I wouldn't rank them. I think they're both extremely fascinating women and in their own worlds. They were both very unique and they shared the fact that they were both linked to very powerful families.
The fact they were able to find their own identity and put it out to the world and find empathy remains unparalleled. There's a reason why they're both probably the most photographed women of the 20th Century, and it's likely that the fascination with these women will never fade.
Even though they were overshadowed by the press and their families they were able to move forward and they were both linked to so much tragedy. It’s so intriguing and painful at the same time.
O-C: It’s likely that members of the Royal family will see Spencer, mainly William and Harry. What do you hope that they will take from it?
LARRAIN: I don't know that they have seen it yet, but I do hope they understand our intentions. It was made out of respect. We have been as clear as possible to say that we are making a work of fiction here.
As it says at the top of the movie, it is a fable but most importantly, I really wouldn't create any more pain and this was made out of love. I wish them the best but I have no idea if they will see the movie, it is at this point, completely out of my hands I’m sure.