A few aspects of “Don’t Worry Darling” are guaranteed to leave viewers reeling: the wild plot twist, those risqué Harry Styles scenes, the haunting soundtrack, and Florence Pugh’s incredible performance. But upon exiting the theater and even days later, we found ourselves daydreaming about another lesser-discussed detail: Alice Chambers’s gorgeous engagement ring.
In the highly gossiped-about psychological thriller, Pugh’s Alice wears a flashy diamond ring that’s hard to ignore as she drinks poolside, shops with friends, cooks for her husband Jack, and meticulously cleans her home from top to bottom. For starters, there’s the sheer size of the diamond, which nearly takes up the width of Pugh’s entire ring finger, but the cut is also incredibly unique. It’s shaped like a rhombus, with four sharp points accentuated by prongs — not nearly as common as other popular cuts, such as round, princess, or oval. The band is flat, gold, and embedded with smaller diamonds extending from the main stone halfway down the band. Overall, the design isn’t necessarily indicative of the 1950s, the decade during which most of the film is set, but nevertheless, it’s a stunner.
There’s likely a deeper significance to Alice’s ring beyond its surface-level beauty. It fits right in with the ruse of her seemingly picture-perfect life in the company town of Victory, where the sun is always shining and her main objectives are making sure the dinner roast is tender, the windows are streak-free, and the bathtub is spotless. In the real world, Alice’s husband is an unemployed, ratty-haired recluse who could never afford such a lavish piece of jewelry — perhaps it’s a tool to please her and distract from growing suspicions about the simulation that is Victory?
Lastly — and this might be a stretch, so hear us out — the ring’s untraditional diamond shape could also be a reflection of Alice’s willingness to go against the grain. Besides Margaret (KiKi Layne), she’s the only one brave enough to call out Frank (Chris Pine) for what he is: a gaslighter, a misogynist, and a fraud. And she’s the only housewife to successfully escape the alternate reality alive (RIP Margaret).
Of course, the above hypotheses are just that: hypotheses. We cannot confirm whether these were costume designer Arianne Phillips‘s intentions, as she wasn’t available to discuss the matter with POPSUGAR, but they’re interesting theories to mull over as you digest the movie, which is now available to stream on HBO Max. And even if you don’t buy into our musings, there’s no denying the ring is a one-of-a-kind scene-stealer. Admire the standout piece ahead.
Victoria Messina
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