More than 16 years after the death of Britain’s Princess Diana, the highly-anticipated film documenting her secret post-divorce romance with surgeon Hasnat Khan premiered last night in London, with negative reactions already pouring in, and in droves!
Dubbed “The People’s Princess,”; Diana touched a wide range of people worldwide. . A younger Diana admirer told us she loved the “kind-hearted”; royal for her dedication to charity work and appreciate the film’s portrayal of the Princess. “Yes, I do remember all of her work. I remember the horrible accident as well, but coming now to a new film, it’s nice, for all the people to remember how great she was.”;
Critics on the other hand were a little less forgiving. So far, reactions have us thinking the controversial film is a royal disaster. The post-premiere reviews range from “cheap and cheerless”; to “squirmingly embarrassing,”; and a positive review has yet to surface. “The awful truth is that, 16 years after that terrible day in 1997, [Diana] has died another awful death,”; one critic wrote.
Naomi Watts and Naveen Andrews play the star crossed lovers and at last night’s premiere the pair talked to ET Canada about the bio-pic. “Usually when you take on a character you work from the inside and then get to the outside and focus on the appearance and the walk and the voice and things like that, but in this case I did it in the reverse direction. Starting with the look and the voice, obviously being the most important one and then getting into the interior life after,”; Naomi said on playing the Princess.
Naomi Watts turned down the iconic role twice because she was afraid of the reception and it turns out she had good reason to. The critics have been less than kind but that didn’t stop Naomi from braving the London red carpet.
One critic attacked her performance saying, “She looks, acts and sounds nothing like the Princess of Wales…Wesley Snipes in a blonde wig would be more convincing.”;
The film’s Director Oliver Hirschbiegel anticipated the rough reception and admitted that the British audience would be his toughest. “Yes of course, it’s the English subject and it has to premiere here, there’s no doubt about it. That audience is probably the toughest I’ll ever have to face.”;
The movie concentrates on the last years of Diana’s life, from her landmine removal charity work, to her affair with Khan, and her persecution by the paparazzi.
The film will be released in the UK on 20 September. Watch tonight’s ETCanada for more from Naomi and Naveen’s red carpet interview.
