The focus of “Being Maria” is on the titular Maria Schneider (Anamaria Vartolomei). The film is a biopic about her experiences making “Last Tango” and being abused by director Bernardo Bertolucci (Giuseppe Maggio) and Brando while making the film. There are two uncomfortable sequences from the film-within-a-film recreated here — one featuring Brando dunking Maria’s head underwater in a bathtub, and the other is the infamous non-consensual sex scene. Making “Last Tango” was traumatic for Schneider, who, as the film shows, suffered in her career as a result and developed an addiction to heroin.
Dillon only appears in the filmmaking section of “Being Maria,” but he makes a strong impression. The former (and perhaps still) heartthrob is a character actor in a leading man’s body. His early roles in “Over the Edge,” “The Outsiders” and “Rumble Fish” may have played up his brooding nature, but don’t typecast him. Dillon showed his flair for comedy in the hit “There’s Something About Mary” and delivered a delicious turn in the wonderfully lurid erotic thriller, “Wild Things.” Arguably, his best performances are in the indie films “Drugstore Cowboy” and “Factotum,” where he played Charles Bukowski’s alter ego — which is what makes him playing Brando both fun and exciting. It’s canny casting.
