There is so much more to learn Princess Diana‘s strange life and impossibly tragic death?
Mother of Prince Williamand Prince Harry—on one hand the People’s Princess and on the other a thorn in the Crown’s side from the moment sheAnd Prince Charlessaid “I do,” depending on whom you ask—will have been gone 25 years on Aug. 31. She’s one of the most dissected public figures of all time, her relationship with the royal family, the press and the citizenry that alternately adored and excoriated her seemingly examined from every angle.
The HBO documentary is a different story.The PrincessThe documentary consists entirely of archive footage and commentary from 1980s and 1990s. It reflects the time in which she lived and how it was changing. There are no reenactments, narrations or current analyses of an era. Much of the ambient noise is provided by the sound of camera shutters clicking away.
The end result is not an attempt to see the “real” Diana behind the scenes, but rather an unsparing look at how her real life was turned into a 24/7 spectacle. And it’s unclear, 42 years after the British press first got wind of the heir to the throne’s most promising love interest yet, whether anything has changed.