Callas Forever (2002)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Franco Zeffirelli

Writers:

Martin Sherman (screenplay) &
Franco Zeffirelli (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

18 September 2002 (Belgium)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

A fictionalized account of the last days of opera singer Maria Callas (Ardant). |

Plot Keywords:

Opera Singer | Maria Callas | Opera | Diva | Tempermental Star

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Fanny Ardant	...	Maria Callas
Jeremy Irons	...	Larry Kelly
Joan Plowright	...	Sarah Keller
Jay Rodan	...	Michael
Gabriel Garko	...	Marco / Don Jose
Manuel de Blas	...	Esteban Gomez
Justino Díaz	...	Scarpia
Jean Dalric	...	Gerard
Stephen Billington	...	Brendan
Anna Lelio	...	Bruna
Alessandro Bertolucci	...	Marcello
Olivier Galfione	...	Thierry
Roberto Sanchez	...	Escamillo
Achille Brugnini	...	Ferruccio
Eugene Kohn	...	Eugene

Also Known As:

Callas Forever (Spain)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for some sexual content and strong language.

Runtime:

France:108 min | Israel:111 min | Spain:112 min | USA:111 min

Country:

Italy | France | Spain | UK | Romania

Language:

English | French | Italian

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

South Korea:12 | Finland:K-3 | France:U | Spain:T | UK:15 | Australia:M | USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Bucharest, Romania

Company:

Medusa Produzione

Goofs:

Anachronisms: A poster of AC/DC's "If You want Blood, You've got It" is seen hanging on a wall of the production company. The record was released in 1978 (one year after Maria Callas' death).

Not The Disaster That Rumour Has It...

Beautifully acted, intelligently written and criminally neglected by critics and distributors (it wasn't even released in the UK or USA) Callas Forever is a haunting and poignant study of the sacrifices an artist makes for her art. The director Franco Zeffirelli based much of it on his own 25-year friendship with the lady herself. Still, this is anything but a straightforward biopic. In a fictional story set during the last few months of the diva's life, Zeffirelli plays a tantalising game of "What if..?"

It's the spring of 1977, and Maria Callas - the world's most famous opera star - is now a recluse in Paris. A tragic cross between Garbo and Norma Desmond, she spends her life popping pills, fighting off bad dreams and listening to recordings of her voice at its glorious peak. Fanny Ardant does a stunning impersonation of the Callas voice and mannerisms. She even looks uncannily like her (apart from the odd awkward shot where she looks like Nana Mouskouri!) But her private hell is disrupted by the arrival of an old friend...

Larry Kelly (Jeremy Irons) is a flamboyant gay impresario, complete with pony-tail! He's just had the brainwave of matching recordings of Callas in her prime with movie versions of her greatest opera hits. First up is Carmen, and this film-within-a-film (a riot of dancing gypsies, dashing matadors and floating lace mantillas) is easily the highlight of the show. We also get not one but two tragic love stories - Maria's unrequited passion for a hunky young tenor (Gabriel Garko) and Larry's doomed affair with a cute young painter (Jay Rodan).

At the end, Larry and Maria sit on a park bench and muse on how they have Sacrificed Their Lives For Their Art. Was it worth it? When the final result is as touching and lyrical as Callas Forever...well, most definitely, yes. Provided, of course, the public gets a chance to see it!