Maria
In his three biographical films about women- “Jackie,” “Spencer” and now “Maria”- he has found a common way into all three women’s complicated lives. In each case, he looks at a condensed period of time, and how they each have their own significance in a rebirth, of sorts, of that woman’s life, in the face of a death of sorts. In “Jackie,” we see her in an interview shortly after John F. Kennedy’s assassination, away from the icon she was in public, as she attempts to put her life back together after tragedy. In “Spencer,” we see Princess Diana during a suffocating weekend in one of the royal family’s homes, at the moment she realizes her marriage must end. Now, we get Maria Callas, at the end of her life, but attempting to see if that legendary voice is still with her. All fascinating ideas for a narrative; all with varying degrees of success.
All three films are anchored by phenomenal performances by their lead actresses. As Callas, we get Angelina Jolie in one of her best performances as a diva who still behaves like a diva, but is past her prime. One of the key influences in this film almost seems to be Billy Wilder’s “Sunset Boulevard,” as Callas is isolated in her Paris apartment, with an obedient butler, Ferruccio Mezzadri (played wonderfully by Pierfrancesco Favino), and a chef, Bruna (Alba Rohrwacher). They do as madame asks, whether it’s Ferruccio moving the piano from one side of the apartment to the next, to Bruna feigning amazement as Maria’s voice, which has lost much of its power. Maria is taking pills at an alarming rate, as well as working with a pianist in an attempt to find her voice again. We also see her as she is interviewed about her life, especially her time with Aristotle Onassis (Haluk Bilginer), by a young man named Mandrax (Kodi Smit-McPhee). Throughout, we see snippets of her life, her performances, and see as she is determined to find that artistic spark that made her a powerhouse opera singer to begin with.
The use of music in “Maria” is very different than in “Jackie” and “Spencer,” which relied more on original scores, in that Callas’s performances anchor the emotional landscape of the drama Larrain is crafting. Because one of the first things we see is Callas dead on the floor of her apartment, this is a different sort of film from the previous two, where their main characters still had lives ahead of them beyond the moments Larrain dramatizes in his films; for Maria, there is only one end available. The suspense, such as it is, is whether or not she is able have one moment where her voice captivates not just herself, but an audience. The screenplay by Steven Knight (“Spencer”) is not as nimble on its feet as those earlier films are; the film doesn’t have the headlong momentum we’ve come to expect from Larrain’s work. That means the music, and Jolie, must carry the load, and they can only go so far. When they do hit the landing, though, it is as powerful moment as Larrain has crafted in these films. That is a credit to his lead actress, and the passion she infuses in her performance.
