Angelina Jolie Fields Questions on U.S. Politics in San Sebastian: “I Love My Country,” But “I Don’t Recognize It At This Time”

Angelina Jolie photographed at the 73rd San Sebastian Film Festival.

She was swiftly made to answer on the chaotic political landscape in her native U.S. at a press conference for her new film, Couture.

Alongside director Alice Winocour and the cast of Couture ahead of the film’s European premiere at the San Sebastian in northern Spain Sunday night, the Oscar-winning actress admitted she wanted to be careful about what she said on the topic.

“It’s a very difficult question,” the Maria star began. “I have to say that I love my country and I don’t, at this time, recognize my country. I’ve always lived internationally . My life, my world view, is equal [and] united. Anything, anywhere that divides or limits personal expressions and freedoms [for anyone] I think is very dangerous,” she added. “I think these are such serious times that we have to be careful not to say things casually. So I’ll be careful in a press conference… But these are very, very heavy times.”

“I did choose to have that because I lost my mother and my grandmother very young, and I have the  BRCA1 gene,” Jolie said, “so I chose to have that a decade ago.”

“Those are my choices,” she continued. “I don’t say everybody should do it that way, but it’s important to have the choice. As Alice said, it’s uniting for not just women, of course, but anybody who’s gone through something [similar].”

Jolie was emotional when asked a question about wearing her mother’s necklace in the film, who died at age 56 from ovarian cancer in 2007. “It’s very hard to speak about my mother,” she said. “You would love my mother. I did wear my mother’s necklace. I also wore her ashes… I think probably everybody in this room has been sitting in a hospital room — maybe some of you have been through heavier things.”