This fictionalized biopic chronicles the final years of opera meta-diva Maria Callas (Fanny Ardant), filling in the blank spots with a "what if" scenario. It's the late 1970s and Callas, once the greatest singer in opera, has lost her voice, been thrown over by Aristotle Onassis in favor of Jackie Kennedy, and now stomps around her apartment in a haze of pills and regret. But just when it seems all hope is lost, her former manager Larry (Jeremy Irons) hits on the plan to do an opera film of CARMEN, with Callas lip-synching her younger voice in the lead, thus preserving her stage presence for future generations. The trouble is that once Callas gets back in the limelight, her over-the-top artistic temperament threatens to destroy the entire project. What's more, Larry's gay lover (Jay Rodan) is throwing tantrums of his own.
Fanny Ardant is incredible as the tortured, egotistical diva and Joan Plowright lends some welcome warmth and wit as the British reporter who sets the plot in motion. As with many a Zeffirelli film, the cast is packed with beautiful people and the photography is elegant. The passages from CARMEN are a real highlight, with Callas's actual recordings used on the soundtrack. An opera director as well as a film director, Zeffirelli was friends with Callas for over 20 years and once tried to talk her into just such a project, so this is obviously a true labor of love.
