The most ‘beautiful girl’ in the world
‘Beautiful Girls,’ showing at Ackerman Grand Ballroom tonight,
stars a young actress whose professionalism and skill belie her
age
By Lael Loewenstein
Daily Bruin Staff
Natalie Portman may be just 14, but don’t let her age fool
you.
The youngest star of the new film, "Beautiful Girls," has, like
her screen counterpart Marty, "a very old soul."
The film screens tonight at Ackerman, after which
writer-producer Scott Rosenberg and director Ted Demme will be on
hand to answer questions.
In "Beautiful Girls," the precocious Marty lives next door to
Willie Conway (Timothy Hutton), who’s in town for his high school
reunion. Despite their 15-year age gap, Marty believes herself to
be Willie’s soul mate and, in a number of delicately humorous
exchanges, entreats him to wait for her.
"When I got the script, I just fell in love with Marty," Portman
recalls. "It’s so rare to find a script where the character is my
age, and smart and funny – and doesn’t have sex."
Portman herself is smart (an A student), funny and hasn’t the
least interest in sex. A veteran of three films, including "Heat"
and "The Professional," Portman is nevertheless serious about not
letting acting interfere with her youth. She seems intent on
finding a balance between her career and her personal life, unlike
many other young actors who hit the fast lane too soon.
"Natalie’s got her head on straight," says co-star Hutton.
"She’s going to be fine. I’m not at all worried about her."
It’s a conviction writer-producer Scott Rosenberg also
shares.
"She’s the smartest person involved in this movie," says
Rosenberg.
"We were so unbelievably lucky to have made this movie at a time
when Natalie Portman was a viable human being," he adds. "We saw a
lot of girls and nobody even came close. To me, she is Marty."
Finding an actress who could play the role without being
pretentious was "the greatest challenge in making the movie," says
producer Cary Woods. "We’d said going in that we couldn’t make the
movie if we couldn’t find Marty. It was the linchpin of the
film."
Portman knows something about Lolita-type roles, having played
young Matilda opposite Jean Reno’s Leon in Luc Besson’s 1994
thriller, "The Professional."
But she draws the line at nudity: Portman passed on the chance
to play Lolita in the upcoming remake of Stanley Kubrick’s classic
film for that reason.
Though the central relationship in "The Professional" was not
sexual, some critics were deeply troubled by the film’s
implications.
"I wasn’t really surprised at the reactions to the film because
people see things in different ways," Portman says. "But it was
such a pure relationship – the same as in ‘Beautiful Girls.’ In
both movies, no boundaries are ever crossed. It’s not dirty in any
way. I’m sorry some people found it offensive, but it wasn’t meant
that way."
She credits her level-headed attitude to her parents, who try to
give their daughter a normal childhood and insist she only act if
she maintains her GPA. She attends public school in the suburbs of
New York City and seems fully intent on attending college.
"I’m having a regular life and a regular upbringing," she says.
"I just have this hobby, my acting, that I do outside."
Portman starting making a living off her "hobby" at age11 when
she went to a pizza parlor one day and met a representative from
Revlon who was seeking young talent for a children’s line of
cosmetics. He invited Portman to try modeling.
"I told him I didn’t want to model," she recalls. "I said I
wanted to act."
Not many young girls would be so defiant, but Portman has always
known exactly what she wanted. Despite her impressive track record,
Portman admits acting may just be a phase.
"I’m not sure if I’ll act when I grow up," she says. "I’ll
decide when I’m an adult."
And the alternative?
"We’ll see." Portman leans back in her chair and smiles. "Maybe
I’ll be an astronaut."
FILM AND SPEAKERS: "Beautiful Girls" screens at Ackerman Grand
Ballroom tonight at 8 p.m. with Q&A including Scott Rosenberg
and Ted Demme to follow. Tickets available at the CTO. For more
info call (310) 825-2538.
Natalie Portman stars as Marty, who decides her soul mate is an
older man, in Ted Demme’s film, "Beautiful Girls."
Uma Thurman stars with Natalie Portman in "Beautiful Girls."
Screenwriter Scott Rosenberg (r.) and Michael Rapaport on the
set.
Director Ted Demme will speak at Ackerman tonight.
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