Natalie Portman is Badass Bruised Rock Star in Vox Lux

Celeste was destined to be a star.  What she wasn’t destined for was ups and downs that come with the territory.  Being discovered singing after a school tragedy and left with a neck injury for life, Celeste is forced to grow up in the public eye which makes her hard and eccentric at best.  No one else would’ve given Celeste life better than Natalie Portman.

In Vox Lux, Natalie Portman portrays a badass, emotionally bruised rock star with the same gusto and attack she gave us when tackling ballet in Black Swan.  It’s dizzying to watch and when it’s over you find yourself wondering what you just witnessed.  Madness at its best or very eccentric fable of a rock star and the complexities that come along with that life.  Portman’s masterful endless monologues, couple with phenomenal hair and makeup give you Lady Gaga at the beginning of her career.  Instead of ‘monsters’, Celeste calls her fans ‘little angels’ and has a complex yet confusing relationship with her sister and daughter that is laced with remnants of  Whitney and Bobbi Kris who were private girls in a public world.

Dedicated to the memory of Jonathan Demme, two things you will take away from Vox Lux.  How accountable should the music industry be when it comes to senseless mass shootings and why we make superstars out of ordinary people only to kick them when their down.  Produced by Neon, Vox Lux hits theatres on December 7th.