Following in the footsteps of more than a few actors this year, such as Joel Edgerton and Ryan Gosling, Natalie Portman recently completed her directorial debut. A Tale of Love and Darkness is based on a bestselling book of the same name by author Amos Oz, chronicling Oz’s early life during the end of the British Mandate for Palestine and the beginning of the new formed Jewish state.
It didn’t quite make a splash at Cannes, where it premiered out of competition this past May, but the first trailer has now arrived sans subtitles (for now). Still, with cinematography from Slawomir Idziak (Black Hawk Down, Gattaca), it looks like Portman has some genuine vision behind the camera. Although not yet set for a U.S. release, one can check it out below with a hat tip to /Film.
Update: Watch the trailer with English subtitles.
A family saga and a magical self-portrait of a writer who witnessed the birth of a nation and lived through its turbulent history. A Tale of Love and Darkness is the story of a boy who grows up in war-torn Jerusalem, in a small apartment crowded with books in twelve languages and relatives speaking nearly as many. The story of an adolescent whose life has been changed forever by his mother’s suicide. The story of a man who leaves the constraints of his family and community to join a kibbutz, change his name, marry, have children. The story of a writer who becomes an active participant in the political life of his nation.
A Tale of Love and Darkness premiered at Cannes and is seeking U.S. distribution.