Deauville 2023: Natalie Portman in 8 Important Roles You Should Know

It should have been the biggest event of the 49th Deauville American Film Festival: Natalie Portman’s arrival on stage. To receive the tribute (also called the Deauville Talent Award), beyond the preliminary presentation in May-December.

But like Jude Law, Peter Dinklage and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, the actor canceled his presence in solidarity with the actors and screenwriters who have been on strike in Hollywood for several weeks.

After winning competition at the recent Cannes Film Festival, Todd Haynes’ new feature film will hit theaters on January 24, 2024. Natalie Portman plays an actress close to the one she’s supposed to play in the next movie, whose sentimental life twenty years earlier ignited the tabloid press and stirred up the country.

He faces Julianne Moore and Charles Melton in this nuanced and ambiguous drama, which can already be considered one of his best films. And while tributes will still be paid despite his absence, we look back at eight key roles in his career.

Leon (1994): Revelation

The film certainly hasn’t aged well, with Natalie Portman herself noting that the sexualization of her character and her relationship with the character played by Jean Reno (who should have been less ambiguous in scenes) gave the film an edge. “unpleasant aspects”.

The actor now maintains “Difficult Feelings” As for this opus, which was filmed when he was 13 and a half years old. But it’s hard to miss when it comes to her career as she has showcased her talent to the world.

As in Heat next year, Natalie Portman shows impressive maturity. At a time when many young actors struggle to transition from childhood to adolescence, he shows that he can play more mature roles, rich with strong emotions. Ვads “talent” and “early” Come back regularly to talk about his performance and rightfully so. Watch on Prime Video and Paramount+

Star Wars Episode I (1999): Takeoff

Tim Burton gave him the baptism of science fiction, while keeping his feet on Earth (Mars Attacks). George Lucas takes it to a galaxy far, far away: the most anticipated film of all time. Never has a feature film caused such a frenzy as Star Wars Episode I when it was released.

And this storm took its actors (Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman, Liam Neeson), taking them to the top of Hollywood with the bad sides that come with such excessive exposure, when fans expressed their disappointment very strongly. before reassessing their decision a few years later.

As Padme Amidala, Anakin Skywalker’s future wife and mother to Luke and Leia, Natalie Portman certainly doesn’t always have much to play with, even if she’s better served in Episodes II and III in that regard. Despite the blue/green background and digital effects that surround him, the actor is far from funny and ultimately addresses the criticisms of the prelude.

Feature films that are impossible not to mention when reviewing your career. for they constitute one of its turning points. And to this day, they remain the biggest films he’s starred in in terms of expectations, scale, and influence (positive and negative) in pop culture. More than Thor, in which he then excelled at Marvel. Watch on Disney+

GARDEN STATE (2004): INDIE ICON

The accomplice of a murderer, the daughter of the President of the United States, the companion of the future greatest villain in the galaxy… If Natalie Portman often played unusual characters, Zach Braff offers her a slightly more ordinary role: the role of a young woman. His heroine falls in love in Garden State, his first film as a director.

No special face, no superpowers, no extraordinary story… Sam looks like a “The Girl Next Door” Gifted with his own small touch of madness, and whose concern is young people his age, who contemplate an uncertain future. Besides having very good taste in music and introducing The Shins to the hero (and a good part of the public).

Thanks to this film, which became a cult for an entire generation, Natalie Portman established herself as an icon of American indie cinema. And the cliché: that “Manic Pixie Dream Girl”However, it was officially created a few years later to evoke Kirsten Dunst’s character in Encounters in Elizabethtown.

But Sammy from the Garden State completely lives up to this vision of the ideal woman, fantastical and sassy, ​​without a personality of her own, often serving the psychological evolution of the hero who is too often in love with her.

Zooey Deschanel (500 Days Together and New Girl) is an even more pronounced incarnation, and Scott Pilgrim manages to avoid it with Ramona Flowers, but this element is found in many American independent feature films. Among them this one, which still remains immensely attractive.

CLOSER (2005): Adult

french subtitles, “Consent between adults”, nicely indicates this evolution in Natalie Portman’s career. If the previous scores were a little more advanced and difficult than those intended for young actors and actresses, she really puts herself at risk in the modern Marivauda staged by Mike Nicholls (Alumnus), in her sexiest role (by choice). then.

Her talent was not in question, but with Closer, Natalie Portman took the next step and became an actress whose name is often heard during award ceremonies. Her striptease scene in front of Jude Law is obviously memorable, but her performance goes beyond that.

He takes full responsibility for Patrick Marbury’s (who is adapting his own play) stilted and intense dialogues, shatters his sage image, stands up to the rest of the cast (Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Clive Owen) and receives his first Oscar nomination. . But not the last. To see on Ciné+ (until 09/17)

V FOR VENDETTA (2006): A powerful gesture

In May 2005, on the steps of the Cannes Film Festival, where she presented the world premiere of Star Wars – Episode III, Natalie Portman attracted attention for reasons of hair: it was with a shaved head that she stood on the sides. George LucasHayden Christensen and Ewan McGregor.

Did you lose the challenge? Looking to celebrate the end of your run in the intergalactic saga? The answer comes quickly: the actress cut her hair for V for Vendetta, the highly anticipated adaptation of Alan Moore and David Lloyd’s graphic novel by Wachowski protégé James McTeague.

Many have drawn parallels to Sigourney Weaver in Alien 3, and the comparison is valid in more ways than one. Because the feature film, the story of a revolution in London that became totalitarian, allows him to play an action hero. Even more so than in Star Wars, which offered him little opportunity to let off steam at this level except for the second episode finale.

His performance is raw, physical, emotional. And the emancipation of her character, Evie Hammond, is also hers. Proof that he’s a contender who’s going to be where he’s least expected. The feature film, of course, did not deliver “this” $135 million worldwide at the box office (54 for a budget), its aura has since grown beyond theaters.

Black Swan (2010): Blessing

Even more physical than V for Vendetta. psychologically more intense. To say that Natalie Portman gave her all on Black Swan is far from an exaggeration, as she gives herself body and soul. And not just for the purposes of the dance scenes, which required intense training (though his studies since then suggest we see more of him on screen than we think).

The actress also has to portray the craziness that her character, Nina, a star on the rise who is willing to do anything to land the lead role. “Swan Lake” Against a young opponent. The world of dance was still as ruthless as that of cinema; Many metatextual aspects can be noted here. Watch on Disney+

In front of the camera of Darren Aronofsky, the filmmaker of obsession and disorientation, among other topics, Natalie Portman gives her most total performance yet. Most notably, and this also explains why the Academy of Oscars, which is very sensitive to this type of launch, awarded her a statuette for Best Actress in 2011. His first and, to this day, his last.

A STORY OF LOVE AND DARKNESS (2015): Director

The main interest in this film is not so much Natalie Portman’s career in front of the camera. But the one holding him back. After the segment I Love You in New York and the short film Eva with Lauren Bacall, she signed her first feature film. without taking the easy way out.

While many choose lighter films with a semi-autobiographical bent (like Zach Braff, who directed him in the Garden State), he takes on Amos Oz’s novel, inspired by his own life and upbringing in Jerusalem during the founding of the state. Israel.

The ambition is there, but the results are not up to par. The Anglo-Saxon press applauds his risk-taking, but condemns the somewhat academic staging and vague point of view. Presented in a special screening at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival, the story of love and darkness goes unnoticed and airs live on video and Canal+ in France.

But this first effort is still worth watching, as it showcases the young director’s tendencies that just need to be confirmed, with a little more confidence. And this is the key stage of his career.

Jack (2016): Rebound

Aside from the Black Swan Oscars, the 2010s weren’t as eventful as Natalie Portman expected. Her roles in the two Thor movies won’t go down among her career highlights (especially since she wanted out of the second movie when Patty Jenkins was dropped).

Jane Got A Gun is most memorable for its chaotic behind-the-scenes setting, with a director who never appeared and a cast that changed. And Planetarium, his first feature film under the direction of a French director (the very talented Rebecca Zlotowski), disappoints. Fortunately, there is Jack.

The second biopic in a row for Pablo Larraín, following the very moving Neruda, the feature focuses on JFK’s widow. By following the 35th President of the United States in the days following his assassination, to reveal what was hidden behind the elegant and refined image that was his.

A pure play of mirrors, where the brilliant staging deciphers the icon by contrasting its public and private aspects, as the director would do a few years later in Lady Di Spencer. In a much more complex and nuanced role than one might imagine, Natalie Portman gives one of her best performances without falling flat.

Like the film and its hero, the actor often tried to transcend his image, with more or less success. But the Oscar nomination for Jack doesn’t do justice to its phenomenal score.