I really wanted to watch this film in spite of all the bad reviews received, and I am glad I did because I got to understand the bad publicity had nothing to do with the movie as such, but with making public a fairly well hidden princess’ story when there is still a need to preserve an image that so well serves as a brand, whether it is a person, an institution, a government or a country.
The problem with this movie is disclosure. Although Kate Snell had already published the book that gives life to this movie, reading has not the same shocking value as watching Naomi Watts excel at portraying Diana’s subtleties and demeanors. That’s when it all became a bit too painful and rejection was the only way to cope with the reality no one wants to deal with: the fairytale of every single woman on earth becoming a princess turns out to be a lavish form of personal slavery!
As for the story behind the romance between Diana and heart surgeon Hasnat Khan, who she nicknamed Mr. Wonderful (skillfully acted by Naveen Andrews), author Kate Snell approached Dr. Khan and also interviewed mutual friends and relatives. He opted for not disclosing information; he did not read the book nor watch the film, but still publicly criticized every aspect of it. As director Oliver Hirschbiegel stated, “Diana, the film, is not a documentary but a dramatic interpretation.” Taken as such, this was a very well made movie.