Angelina Jolie Portrays Tormented ‘Divina’ Callas in Venice

Angelina Jolie steps back into the spotlight at the Venice Film Festival on Thursday, portraying the legendary Maria Callas. Known as “La Divina,” Callas’ powerful voice, glamorous aura, and tragic love story captivated audiences worldwide.

In the biopic “Maria,” directed by the Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larrain, Jolie will embody the dramatic essence and troubled life of one of opera’s most magnificent divas. The film, which debuts Thursday evening, completes Larrain’s trilogy about iconic historical women, following the release of “Spencer” about Lady Diana in 2021 and “Jackie” about Jacqueline Kennedy in 2016.

Larrain emphasized that only a truly larger-than-life star could do justice to the role of the American-born Greek singer. Thus, Angelina Jolie was chosen.

“This is the greatest diva of the 20th century, and who could play that?” Larrain told Vanity Fair last week. “I needed an actress who would naturally and organically be that diva, carry that weight, be that presence. Angelina was there.”

Jolie, who last appeared on-screen in 2021, has kept a low profile, despite the ongoing public interest in her acrimonious divorce from Brad Pitt. The media frenzy around Jolie’s personal life echoes the attention Callas received due to her tumultuous relationships, notably with the Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis, who left her for Jacqueline Kennedy.

While the paparazzi are sure to flock to Jolie’s appearance at the festival, there’s no chance she will encounter Pitt. He is set to appear in “Wolfs,” an action comedy playing out of competition on Sunday, alongside George Clooney. The festival organizers deliberately scheduled the movies on different days to prevent any awkward meetings.

Competing for the festival’s prestigious Golden Lion prize, “Maria” focuses on the final, solitary years of Callas’s life in Paris during the 1970s, reflecting on her illustrious career and life before her untimely death at 53 from a heart attack.

Jolie prepared extensively for the role, reportedly dedicating six months to studying the singer’s vocal techniques. The film integrates her own voice with that of the celebrated soprano to capture Callas’s distinct sound.

“You can’t make a movie like this with an actress that is not actually singing it,” Larrain shared with Vanity Fair. “This is the real thing—it was very scary for her, but she did it.”

Despite some criticism of Callas’s voice, it was deeply expressive, able to imbue any role with dramatic intensity. Her beauty and majestic stage presence often led to frenzied standing ovations. A prodigious talent, Callas was renowned for her tireless work ethic and was frequently labeled “temperamental,” a notion she vehemently opposed. She saw herself as a disciplined perfectionist with high standards.

One of her greatest achievements was reviving the 19th-century bel canto operas of Donizetti, Rossini, and Bellini, with “Norma” being one of her signature roles. Maria Callas passed away in 1977, but her legacy endures through her unparalleled contributions to the world of opera.

Source: Vanity Fair, AFP