Maria by Callas (2017)

An intimate look at the life and work of Greek-American opera singer Maria Callas, as told in her own words.

Director:

Tom Volf

Stars:

Fanny Ardant, Joyce DiDonato, Maria Callas

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Fanny Ardant	...	(voice)
Joyce DiDonato	...	María Callas / Narration (voice)
Maria Callas	...	Herself (archive footage)
Aristotle Onassis	...	Himself (archive footage)
Vittorio De Sica	...	Himself (archive footage)
Pier Paolo Pasolini	...	Himself (archive footage)
Luchino Visconti	...	Himself (archive footage)
Omar Sharif	...	Himself (archive footage)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Antonio	...	Himself (archive footage)
Brigitte Bardot	...	Herself (archive footage)
Jean Cocteau	...	Himself (archive footage)
Elvira de Hidalgo	...	Herself (archive footage)
Catherine Deneuve	...	Herself (archive footage)
Duchess of Windsor	...	Herself (archive footage)
Duke of Windsor	...	Himself (archive footage)

Storyline

An intimate look at the life and work of Greek-American opera singer Maria Callas, as told in her own words.

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Taglines:

Ave, Maria or The legendary diva - in her own words

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Genres:

Documentary | Biography | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild thematic elements, some smoking and brief language

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [Germany] Official site [Japan]

Country:

France

Language:

English French Italian

Release Date:

2 November 2018 (USA)

Also Known As:

Maria by Callas: In Her Own Words

Filming Locations:

Palm Beach, Florida, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$91,915, 4 November 2018, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$1,267,301, 14 February 2019

Company Credits

Production Co:

Elephant Doc, Petit Dragon, Unbeldi Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film screened at TIFF in Toronto in September 2018.

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Connections

References Medea (1969)

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Soundtracks

Vieni! T'affretta!
From the Opera "Macbeth" (Hamburg 1959)
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Performed by Maria Callas, Sinfonieorchester des Norddeutschen Rundfunks and Nicola Rescigno

User Reviews

disappointing

The film brings almost nothing new to the subject, rehashes old material, and includes long sections of her performances and interviews that are available on YouTube. There are a few snippets from her private letters and some home movie footage, which are fun to see, but hardly add up to ten minutes of content. Instead it's mostly a series of shots of her wading through a sea of journalists and fans, interspersed with performance footage. Although it's great fun to see her public persona, the wonderful costumes, the self-conscious posing for the cameras, the film actually tells us nothing about the real Maria. Instead, the focus seems to be that public persona: she was the embodiment of glamor and class. Callas is like a prism: there are so many facets to her. A documentary could focus on so many fascinating elements: her unique talent and musical genius, her reputation as a diva, the viscous Italian claques that conjured up this supposed feud with Tebaldi, her childhood and youth in NY and Athens and her relationship with her family, her relationships with men, her post-retirement years hidden away in Paris, so many others. I was hoping this movie would provide new insight, but was very disappointed.