If you haven’t had a chance to see Maria, the extraordinary film about beloved opera legend and original diva Maria Callas, um, why not? Okay, maybe you’re not a fan of opera music, and that’s what’s been keeping you from committing to a view. We get it. But suppose you’re a vintage fashion fan. In that case, we invite you to gaze upon Angelina Jolie (Maria Callas) as she strolls through the film in the most gorgeous 1970s looks while portraying the acclaimed artist’s final days before her passing.
Although the sprawling movie calls back to Callas’s life in the 50s and 60s, the 1970s looks had us hitting the pause button on repeat. From Massimo Cantini Parrini’s custom wardrobe to Adruitha Lee’s hair transformations and Pamela Goldammer’s makeup artistry, Jolie’s Callas is a 70s vision in Paris.
In an interview with Netflix, Parrini said he made more than 60 creations for the film and that all of the opera and performance costumes are reconstructions of the actual dresses worn by Callas. However, because photos of the singer from the 1970s were few and far between, Parrini designed her wardrobe “… by analyzing her state of mind and her taste. She dressed mainly in black, always remaining very elegant. I re-created her entire wardrobe with extreme passion, trying to put myself in her shoes and imagining what she would have liked.” And, yes, Callas did wear those larger-than-life eyeglasses in real life.
Parrini pulled vintage pieces from his archive. The Hermès and Gucci scarves worn by Jolie in Maria belonged to the grandmother of the costume designer, telling Refinery29, “I felt Maria would have worn these scarves because she used to wear these designers. I talked to Angelina about them – and there were very many scarves she could select from – but she chose to wear these.”
To complete her 70s transformation, Jolie turned to her personal hair stylist, Adruitha Lee, and makeup artist, Pamela Goldammer. To create Jolie’s cascading hair, Lee told Variety that traditional rollers and curling irons weren’t working for their desired look. So, she made hair rollers from paper towels that Jolie wore overnight. “That was the curl, the natural look that I felt emulated what her (Callas) hair naturally was.” Goldhamme added, “We were jumping between decades, stage looks, glamor and opera looks.”
