Angelina Jolie breaks down in Canada recalling her mother and talking about cancer in her new film “Couture” Emotions overwhelmed Angelina Jolie during her appearance at the Toronto International Film Festival, where the 50-year-old Hollywood actress presented her new movie “Couture.” In the film she plays Maxine, a film director who receives the devastating diagnosis of breast cancer while traveling in Paris.
The role struck deeply personal chords for Jolie, who lost her mother, Marcheline Bertrand, in 2007 to the same disease, and who in 2013 made the difficult decision to undergo a preventive double mastectomy to dramatically reduce her own chances of developing it. A video circulating on Instagram shows the actress breaking into tears while answering questions from the audience. Jolie confessed that during the screening she wore the necklace that belonged to her late mother, both at the festival and in the film’s scenes, to feel her presence and keep her close during such an intimate moment. Through tears, she recalled advice her mother once gave her:
“People always asked me about the cancer, but I am so much more than that.” When asked by an audience member how to support someone who has lost a loved one to cancer, Jolie said: “Ask them also about everything else in their life. That person is still alive, still whole.” The actress admitted that, through the character of Maxine, she relived experiences tied to fear, fragility and pain that accompany any diagnosis. Yet she also spoke of the strength that can emerge in such moments.
“I consider myself fortunate. This film is very reflective; it sits you down and forces you to think about life. Each of us has already been touched by loss. The question is: how do you go on living after that?” she reflected. For Jolie, what makes “Couture” unique is that it does not reduce the character’s life to cancer, but instead portrays her full identity: mother, artist, sensual and creative woman, with dreams and passions beyond the disease.
Visibly moved, Jolie stressed the importance of living fully while there is still life, even in the midst of pain. “Maxine is not just a patient. She is a whole woman, and that is what I wanted to show. Because while we are here, we must live as much as we can,” she concluded with a trembling voice, drawing an emotional ovation from the Canadian audience.
