THE ROLE OF A DIVA AS PLAYED BY A DIVA... "CALLAS FOREVER"

It’s funny, I always thought Maria Callas was Spanish. I know how this came about too, I was brought up on a rather eclectic diet of nursery rhymes and operas and Carmen, as sung by Maria Callas was one of my favourite things ever. I still love it and the recording has been listened and re-listened to within an inch of its life. I guess at some point Carmen and Callas merged in my head, so she became Spanish. I was a little surprised to find out she was Greek. Surprised, yet proud in a funny way, you know, the Greeks are neighbours after all. But you know, in a way, it doesn’t really matter that much. Callas was, above and beyond anything else, a diva. A gigantic talent. And above such things as nationality. This is why it is so fitting that a grand actress like Fanny Ardent is the one who portrays her. A diva to play a diva. And of course we have Franco Zefirelli at the helm, one of the old masters of cinema and a close friend of Callas herself. The result? Yes. It indeed is the showstopper you expect it to be.

Callas forever joins Maria Callas in the last year of her life, 1977. She is only 53, but her voice is nowhere near what it used to be. Callas, a consummate diva, has shut herself up in her home in Paris, rarely going out and slipping further and further into depression. Her friends are worried about her but are unsure how to go about helping this proud woman until Larry (Jeremy Irons,) her old manager, has a brainwave. Technology means there is a way for Maria to return to the screen, if not the stage, despite her failing voice. The question is, will Maria accept this partial return to the limelight? Or is Larry’s idea too little, too late?

That was another mythic bit about Callas wasn’t it? I am pretty sure I remember the whole “thing” of the reclusive artist, going over and over the recordings of their former glory, finding its place in a lot of films, sometimes as a tragic element, sometimes as a comic one. Personally, I don’t think there is anything really funny about it. Anyone who lives long enough to reach retirement age is going to be plagued by feelings of doubt and depression. The feeling that they are no longer “useful” that they are “ready for the scrap heap”. The way the creative industries function today, the “retirement age” is a lot younger and the “fall” a lot steeper as one goes from absolute adoration to complete anonymity and this can go to the head of even moderately famous and talented artists, much less a musical talent like Callas who has been one of the top performers in her field for decades. It is the realisation that while you were once capable of so much, you are now maybe capable of only half that – or even less. It must be quite frightening to feel that you have decade upon decade of “absolutely nothing” ahead of you. No wonder Callas was trying to hang on to her days of glory.

Of course with subject matter like that, the film cannot go far wrong – a good story is definitely the backbone of any film but I honestly think Fanny Ardent does make all the difference. Much to my delight (spoiler alert, people) a good chunk of the film is taken up by the filming of Carmen and the cast watching back some of the most popular scenes. This gives the film the slightly musical, actually no, operatic quality a biography of Callas simply must have. But it also puts Ardent herself in the rather awkward position of having to pretend to be Callas who is pretending to be Carmen who is pretending to sing – and is actually singing with Callas’ own voice.  Because, of course, Ardent’s own interpretation of Carmen is one thing but Callas’ interpretation of the part is something completely different… Boy it must have been a challenge to work that one out! Another mention simply has to go to Jeremy Irons who is absolutely marvellous as Larry, who is almost as much a diva as Callas herself, a typical industry professional a little too tied up with his career to take care of his private life. Another strong character in the film is that of Joan Plowright as Sarah Keller, the journalist and their common friend who is also trying to get Callas back on her feet. The portrait is a wonderful, unflinching yet very humane portrayal of a very extraordinary woman. Ardent’s performance makes me hanker for the old days, the old fashioned stars. I strongly recommend this film, even if you aren’t a particular fan of Callas or the opera. Because, let’s not forget, the original Callas Forever was meant to open up Callas’ works to a new generation… Who knows… It may work its magic on you too…