Angelina Jolie plays opera great Maria Callas in the latest of director Pablo Larrain’s long string of biographical films about famous, troubled women.
How to watch Maria in New Zealand
Maria is screening in New Zealand cinemas from January 30, 2025.
Maria (2024)
What is Maria about?
Opera! Well, opera singers. Well, one opera singer: Maria Callas, the Greek-American legend famed for her stunning voice, her histrionic temperament, and her long affair with Greek shipping tycoon Aristotle Onassis (which gives us some connective tissue with Larrain’s earlier film, Jackie). Taking place in the final week of Callas’ life in 1977, the film relates her story in flashback as she is interviewed by documentary filmmaker Mandrax and, at other times, psychiatrist Dr. Fontainebleu. She recounts her wartime childhood, when she was forced to entertain German and Italian officers, and her tumultuous affair with Onassis.
The cast of Maria
Angelina Jolie is Maria Callas, while Aggelina Papadopoulou, Lídia Zelikman Kauders, and Christiana Aloneftis play the younger Callas at various points in her life. Pierfrancesco Favino is Ferruccio, her steadfast butler; Alba Rohrwacher is Bruna, her housemaid; Haluk Bilginer is Aristotle Onassis; Kodi Smit-McPhee is Mandrax; Stephen Ashfield is conductor Jeffrey Tate; and Valeria Golino is Yakinthi Callas, her older sister. Plus there’s Erofili Panagiotarea as the younger Yakinthi Callas; Caspar Phillipson as John F. Kennedy; Vincent Macaigne as Dr. Fontainebleau; and Lydia Koniordou as Litsa Callas, Maria’s mother.
Maria trailer
Why we’re excited about Maria
Pablo Larrain excels at presenting us with insightful biopics of strong women suffering in the mericless glare of the spotlight, so Maria Callas is a perfect subject for him. Word from the festival circuit is rapturous, and Angelina Jolie’s performance has drawn strong praise. It is, however, apparently a very heightened, occasionally histrionic affair. This certainly seems to suit the frequently histrionic Callas, but maybe don’t go in expecting much in the way of subtlety.
