“Angelina! Angelina! Angelina!”
The Venice Film Festival loves its movie stars, and Angelina Jolie was the toast of Italy on Thursday night. The actress wept during an eight-minute standing ovation at the Sala Grande Theatre at the world premiere of “Maria,” Pablo Larraín’s biographical drama about the Greek opera singer Maria Callas.
Jolie was similarly taken by the rapturous response, wiping away tears and at time turning her face away from the cheering as she was overcome by emotion. She hugged Larraín and the cast of the film, which is sure to be an Oscar contender, putting Jolie in the best actress race for the first time in 15 years. (She was nominated in 2009, for her her work in Clint Eastwood’s “The Changeling,” and won an Oscar for best supporting actress in 2000 for “Girl, Interrupted.”)
Netflix will release “Maria” later this year.
In Venice, the fandom for Jolie started a full 24 hours before the screening of “Maria.” A group of Italians camped out overnight on Wednesday with tents and umbrellas, enduring 90 degree temperatures for a front-row interaction with their idol at the carpet.
When Jolie arrived at the theater, she dutifully signed autographs and took selfies. She even met a fan with brittle bone disease who had been transported to the carpet on a bed, kneeling beside him as she greeted him amidst the flashing lightbulbs from the paparazzi.
Maria reunites Larraín and writer Steven Knight, whose last project “Spencer” bowed in Venice in 2021, and tells the “tumultuous, beautiful, and tragic story of the life of the world’s greatest opera singer, relived and re-imagined during her final days in 1970s Paris.”
“Maria” is the third in Larraín’s trilogy of films about iconic women, following “Spencer” and 2016’s “Jackie” about Jacqueline Kennedy in the aftermath of her husband JFK’s assassination. But “Maria” at time plays like a bookend to “Judy,” the 2019 biopic that won Renee Zellweger an Oscar for portraying a troubled Judy Garland, contending with the pitfalls of fame.
At a press conference earlier in the day, Jolie spoke about preparing to play the famous soprano Callas, which marked her first time singing in a role.
“Everybody here knows, I was terribly nervous,” she said of learning to sing opera. “I spent almost seven months training because when you work with Pablo you can’t do anything by half. He demands, in the most wonderful way, that you really do the work and you really learn and train.”
A Deeper Dive into 'Maria'
The film tells the story of Maria Callas’ life, relived and re-imagined during her final days in 1970s Paris. It is the third in Pablo Larraín’s trilogy of films about iconic women, following “Spencer” and 2016’s “Jackie”. The film is set in Paris in 1977, in the final days of Callas’ life, when she is trying to sing again after years away from a stage, for a public that had booed her when they didn’t like the sound of her voice and branded her a “tigress” for her temperament. Larraín says that, like Callas, “Angelina has an enormous amount of mystery. I thought she could play this woman who is looking to find her own identity.”
Jolie's Return to Filmmaking
The film projects are personal in ways that are almost uncomfortable to discuss, with Maria — for which Jolie spent more than six months learning to sing, breathe and walk like the mercurial soprano — a portrait of an icon imprisoned by her own image. Jolie’s last film as a director was 2017’s First They Killed My Father and most recent as an actor was the 2021 Marvel movie Eternals. She declines to discuss Pitt, or talk about 20-year-old son Pax’s recent e-bike accident, other than to say he is recovering. She says, “I’m trying to get used to what to share.” She says, “I’m a very deeply feeling person and kind of a raw nerve.”
The 'Maria' Premiere
Jolie was overcome with emotion during the premiere of “Maria,” receiving an eight-minute standing ovation for her performance as Maria Callas. She wiped away tears and at time turning her face away from the cheering as she was overcome by emotion. She hugged Larraín and the cast of the film, which is sure to be an Oscar contender, putting Jolie in the best actress race for the first time in 15 years. The film, which is sure to be an Oscar contender, puts Jolie in the best actress race for the first time in 15 years. The outpouring of love and emotion brings to mind another standing ovation in Venice that launched the Oscar campaign for Brendan Fraser in “The Whale,” as he sobbed through the applause that cemented a career comeback in 2022.
Jolie's Future in Film
Jolie is figuring out how she wants to talk about her films. She has now made two films so intimate to her own experiences. She says, “I am often not. I was an artist early to just help my mom pay bills. I’ve had times where I’ve loved being an artist, and I’ve had times where I felt very, very far away from being comfortable in the business. I’m hoping to be able to have a new relationship with it. ”
A Lasting Impact
The public, we feel like we know you. Maybe we’ve gone through something you’ve gone through and talked about publicly — breast cancer, the loss of your mother. What is it like to have people express those connections to you?
Jolie said, “It’s one of the nicest things — maybe the only nice thing — about being a public person, your connection with other people. I realized when I came into this business, doing things like Gia or Girl, Interrupted, and I expressed so much of my madness and my pain. When people connected to it, I felt less alone. So if somebody were to talk to me about having gone through breast cancer or losing their parent, then I feel more deeply connected with another human being. To go into a room full of people you don’t know, and have a lot in common very quickly because somehow you’ve been in their home on the television or you made their children laugh or they know something personal, that’s really nice.”
