Natalie Portman

[mrpancake]

It's easy when you make millions and are famous worldwide to not just get in, but be able to concentrate and study frequently enough to get through quickly.

Oh, I don't disagree. I'm sure she had lots of help and her time was somewhat easier than the average student, but I still think it's admirable that she went through and finished her education when she just as easily could have ditched it with little to no effect on her career. Yeah, he being a Harvard graduate is mentioned consistently in interviews, but I don't think it's why she continues to stay famous.

ETA: I think it's somewhat shortsided to call it easy just because she was rich. I think her being famous gave her an edge in rather than her money. I mean, you have to donate A LOT to get in based on money, and even then, they do require a certain degree of intelligence. I think she was a smart kid who was given an edge because she was famous.

[nuharoo]

mrpancake said:

Oh, I don't disagree. I'm sure she had lots of help and her time was somewhat easier than the average student, but I still think it's admirable that she went through and finished her education when she just as easily could have ditched it with little to no effect on her career. Yeah, he being a Harvard graduate is mentioned consistently in interviews, but I don't think it's why she continues to stay famous.

ETA: I think it's somewhat shortsided to call it easy just because she was rich. I think her being famous gave her an edge in rather than her money. I mean, you have to donate A LOT to get in based on money, and even then, they do require a certain degree of intelligence. I think she was a smart kid who was given an edge because she was famous.

I really can't disagree.

[Deleted]

There are a lot of smart kids out there who can conduct inovative neuroscience or cognitive science research. It takes an emotionally intelligent person to kniow when to be discreet and humble. This she has yet to prove.

[nuharoo]

There are a lot of smart kids out there who can conduct inovative neuroscience or cognitive science research. It takes an emotionally intelligent person to kniow when to be discreet and humble. This she has yet to prove.

I believe people who manage to be humble and decent are the ones who are honest with themselves and have a naturally good natured temperment. I mean, Einstein was more than willing to admit that he was wrong and would even point out where he got something wrong.

[tinyshoes]

I think she's just proud of her intelligence and standing out from all the other generic starlets. I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt and chalk it up to her youth (one of the oldest excuses in the book, I know). That said, I hope she learns a bit of humility before she turns into a pretentious caricature a la Fishstick or Ashley Judd.

[agnesnitt]

mrpancake said:

Yeah, I think it is, especially considering how few people in Hollywood actually have an education beyond high school, if that. It's a feat to make it through college in the ordinary world, but it's a lot more remarkable in Hollywood where so many forego a higher education to act. So while the things may not be that impressive to those who have had an education, it is to those who haven't been to college. I know a lot of people hate her here, but I don't. Yeah, she's a little pretentious, but she's also about 22 and fresh out of Harvard. What do you expect. Plus, I actually think she's a good actress and was the only good thing about Closer. Yeah, I'll just sneak out the back...

The 'no movie star has ever been to college apart from NATALIE PORTMAN!' rumour was started by her publicist. I'd say that the number of college-educated actors pretty much reflects the percentage of college-educated people in the country. Every English actor with a posh accent you can think of has been to Oxbridge (Ian McKellen, Hugh Grant, Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Colin Firth, Rachel Weiz, Emily Mortimer, all the Redgraves, Dereck Jacobi- off the top of my head). Nearly every Austrailian actor I can think of started their careers in University (Cate, Nicole, Naomi, Hugh Jackman). In the past five years alone Julia Stiles, Joseph-Gordon Levitt, Anna Paquin, the Gllyenhalls, Casey Affleck (Majored in Physics, fact fans), Clare Danes, Jordana Brewster and Leelee Sobeiski/Hunt have been to Ivy Leagues. And that's not counting the hundreds of American actors whose bios I can't be bothered to search who went to University before they got famous.
The 'Natalie Portman must be special because she's the *only actor ever!* to go to University' is possibly the most annoying aspect of Portman-PR and her personality. The reason why people may believe this may be because Portman's the only one who talks about it all the feckin' time. It's just not true. Many, many actors are far more highly educated and far more intelligent than la Portman.
It's as if Portman is the only actor who *isn't* Cameron Diaz or Brad Pitt.

[Deleted]

True--you don't see Jodie Foster bragging about going to Yale. And she was a child movie star just like Natalie.

[Deleted]

Plus, Natalie graduated two years ago. Her publicist needs to find something else to tout ASAP. Plus, a lot of celebrities who don't have ivy league educations come across as far more articulate and cultured than she does (not saying that she isn't smart or that it isn't a great achievement to graduate from college but her interviews don't always live up to the image her publicist puts forward).

[Deleted]

I think a lot of the Harvard rhetoric stems from Natalie herself. As someone else said, it's her way of distinguishing herself from the hordes. The thing is, someone needs to call her on it, and ask her exactly when she's signing up for that astronaut degree, or whatever the heck she went on about in one of the mag interviews, or a PhD in Lit with an emphasis on W.E.B Dubois, who's work she claims she's so familiar with. Mayim Bialik is a PhD student at UCLA in physics or computer science or something like that - why doesn't Nat make the transition? I doubt she's seriously interested, she just enjoys sounding like a cultural elite. How bourgeois.

[nuharoo]

I'm going to give her the benefit of the doubt and chalk it up to her youth

I disagree. She's in her early twenties, not a thirteen year old adolescent. Furthermore she's very worldly for her age and should have a good idea as to how to come across. Furthermore she should have a realistic and more reflective idea of who she is.

The 'no movie star has ever been to college apart from NATALIE PORTMAN!' rumour was started by her publicist. I'd say that the number of college-educated actors pretty much reflects the percentage of college-educated people in the country. Every English actor with a posh accent you can think of has been to Oxbridge (Ian McKellen, Hugh Grant, Hugh Laurie, Stephen Fry, Colin Firth, Rachel Weiz, Emily Mortimer, all the Redgraves, Dereck Jacobi- off the top of my head). Nearly every Austrailian actor I can think of started their careers in University (Cate, Nicole, Naomi, Hugh Jackman). In the past five years alone Julia Stiles, Joseph-Gordon Levitt, Anna Paquin, the Gllyenhalls, Casey Affleck (Majored in Physics, fact fans), Clare Danes, Jordana Brewster and Leelee Sobeiski/Hunt have been to Ivy Leagues. And that's not counting the hundreds of American actors whose bios I can't be bothered to search who went to University before they got famous.
The 'Natalie Portman must be special because she's the *only actor ever!* to go to University' is possibly the most annoying aspect of Portman-PR and her personality. The reason why people may believe this may be because Portman's the only one who talks about it all the feckin' time. It's just not true. Many, many actors are far more highly educated and far more intelligent than la Portman.

Another aspect is her ice princess image. Remember Natalie is a delicate aristocratic artiste who was protected from this brutal common world and the other common actors and actresses. Her beauty was so overpowering that in fear of Natalie becoming shallow her parents hustled her off to Harvard before her precious mind could be corrupted by all the ignorant philistine people of Hollywood.

Getting back to reality she's a shallow, vain, snotty brat who obviously needs to experience a few hard knocks.

That said, I hope she learns a bit of humility before she turns into a pretentious caricature a la Fishstick or Ashley Judd.

Too late, the damage has been done.