Angelina Jolie’s Performance in Netflix’s ‘Maria’ Is Captivating, Convincing & Worthy of an Oscar

Maria tells the real-life story of Maria Callas (played by Jolie), who is widely known as one of the most iconic opera singers of the 20th-century. The movie takes place during the height of her career, when she retreats to Paris while trying to find a balance between her personal life and her public career. In short, the singer’s life story is beautifully tragic, and Jolie perfectly encapsulates every complicated aspect of the diva’s mysterious personality.

With technology these days, you don’t have to be a Grammy-winning artist to play a singer on the big screen. That’s what autotune, makeup and special effects are for. While Callas’s voice was used in the film (not Jolie’s), Jolie didn’t rely on post-production to sell her performance. She put in work behind the scenes to learn Callas’s mannerisms and educate herself on the world of opera, and it shows. 

If I didn’t know any better, I would think that Jolie has been studying Callas for years. Her body language is an ideal combination of sultry and confident, but her eyes tease the haunting truth behind the singer’s complicated life.

Let me be clear: The film features Callas’s real voice in most of the scenes, but Jolie still found a way to make it her own. The way her mouth and lips move during riffs prove that Jolie knows what she’s doing and isn’t just going through the motions with a pre-recorded track. 

The best part? Jolie’s acting performance is just as convincing as the singing. I won’t bore you with the details, but she already received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress in a Drama Motion Picture. And if my predictions are correct, she will likely get an Oscar nomination for her scene-stealing portrayal in Maria. (This would mark her first Academy Award nomination since Changeling in 2008.)

Jolie’s performance alone is more than enough reason to watch Maria. It’s not the most action-packed film, but it’s a powerful tribute to the opera community, Maria Callas and Jolie’s decades-long career.

Maria is now streaming on Netflix.

For a full breakdown of PureWow's entertainment rating system, click here.

Stay up-to-date on every entertainment story by subscribing here.