“I was interested in shining the spotlight on a woman who was used by everyone for her talent and in the end, she just wanted to sing for herself. To find her own voice” said Pablo Laraine about his new film “Maria” which deals with the life of Maria Callas, with Angelina Jolie playing the great soprano.

The Chilean director’s film had its official premiere last night (29/8) at the 81st Venice International Film Festival to a prolonged and warm ovation from the audience, but the opinions of journalists and professionals are divided.

Some are talking about Jolie’s “magnificent and impressive” return, while others are talking about a “polished and exaggerated film”. Most praise the “robust and convincing” interpretation of the American actress, however some describe her as “shallow and unnerved”, “as if she is playing a woman who interprets Maria Callas”.

The truth is that the distance that the Chilean director keeps from the great diva of the opera, make the film look like (as the authoritative magazine The Hollywood Reporter very aptly wrote) a “sparkling jewel enclosed in a glass case which invites you to look, but don’t touch it.”

With “Maria” contending for the Golden Lion, the Chilean director closes his informal trilogy on the big screen with portraits of famous female personalities after “Jackie” (2016) with Natalie Portman as Jackie Kennedy and “Spencer” (2021). with Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana.

At the press conference, Pablo Laraine, explaining why he chose this time to make a biographical film about Maria Callas, said: “Not many films are made about the opera today. Personally, I have loved Maria Callas since I was a small child. None of us know what really went on behind the doors of the Paris apartment in the 70s. So I don’t know if what we’re watching in the movie is the true story of her last days. However, what I felt is that there was love, not just loneliness and hopelessness. Her butler and housekeeper protected her. I didn’t want to make a film that would be a tragedy by definition.”

“It’s the scariest thing I’ve ever done”

“I won’t hide it from you, it’s the scariest thing I’ve done, to try to interpret the way Callas interpreted the music” admitted the American actress, noting that to meet the needs of the role she attended singing lessons, however the first time who played in a scene where Callas sings, was shaking.

Her preparation for the film took almost seven months. “Pablo gave me time to progress, but I was afraid I wouldn’t respond,” Angelina Jolie said. “At first, when I accepted the role, I thought the biggest challenge would be technical, in how you perform opera. But it wasn’t like that at all. She was more emotional. I had to find my “voice” too. And I didn’t realize how hard this was for me and how “locked” I was. This role was the therapy I didn’t know I needed. I felt that Maria directed me along with Pablo. She was in a way my teacher for the role.”

Speaking about how she herself felt about Maria Callas, she said she wished she was here today. “Just before she died, she tried to get her life back together, but the critics were merciless with her. I think she died with the sadness of not being loved anymore. I wish he could be here today and see that this was not true. She was much loved both as a diva and as a woman.” As she said the word diva may now have a negative connotation, but Callas relearned the word: “I think the great composers used it differently, to describe someone who is excellent and a perfectionist in her work. Everything else came later. Callas was so strict and so disciplined first with herself.”

As for whether she herself recognizes common elements with the great soprano, the American actress said: “I resemble her in many ways, but I will not reveal them here. Perhaps, you know them or assume them. What we have in common is her extremely soft side and the fact that she couldn’t express it in public. How vulnerable she really was, while she looked stern and tough.”

Although her name is already being heard as one of the serious nominations for the Best Actress Oscar, Angelina Jolie said that the only people she cares about right now are Callas fans and opera lovers. “My biggest fear would be to disappoint them and not serve this woman’s reputation,” he said.