Maria
Angelina Jolie hits the notes as opera legend Maria Callas in Pablo Larrain’s latest biopic.
The word diva comes from opera, and, in the world of opera, Maria Callas owned it. Having made films on Jacqueline Kennedy (“Jackie”) and Princess Diana (“Spencer”) Pablo Larrain tunes his ears to the myth of Callas, played here by Angelina Jolie. Larrain uses the familiar narrative structure of the flashback and adds some operatic grace notes to deliver a performance-led film that is never less than expected.
Fionnuala Halligan, Screen International
Pablo Larraín (1976) is one of the most notable Chilean filmmakers. By now no stranger to PÖFF audience, he gained international attention already with his first feature film “Fuga” (2005) which won several awards at various festivals. His next movie “Tony Manero” (2008) premiered at Cannes. “Post Mortem” (2010) premiered at Venice, as part of the official competition section. His fourth film “No” (2012) premiered at Cannes and was also part of PÖFF programme. “The Club” (2015) brought him the directing award at Berlinale. “Neruda” (2016) was shown at PÖFF Panorama section. In the same year he made his English-language debut with “Jackie” (starring Natalie Portman as Jackie Kennedy). His 2019 film “Ema” was shown at PÖFF in the Signatures section. His second English-language film “Spencer” (2021) about Princess Diana premiered at Venice and received numerous nominations.
Fuga (2006), Tony Manero (2008), Post Mortem (2010), No (PÖFF 2012), El club (The Club, 2015), Neruda (PÖFF 2016), Jackie (2016), Ema (PÖFF 2019), Spencer (2021), El conde (2023), Maria (2024)