Natalie Portman is not only an actress, but she is also a director, and producer, who received her Oscar before turning 30. She has emerged as one of the most stunning and promising actresses of her time. Therefore, TechTrends made a list of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
Natalie Portman is an excellent actress who has impressed with her many abilities in acting as well as ballet, jazz, and tap-dancing skills. She is one of the best Oscar-winning actresses and for her passionate support of female filmmakers, Portman gained notoriety. Moreover, it is quite inspirational that she is working towards positive change in the movie industry. Since her debut at a very early age, Portman came a long way, with her performance being both steady and consistent. She has done many movies, a lot of which has earned praise from critics and audience. Although the movies she acts it may not always be great, Portman has the ability to bring a certain gravitas to the roles she portrays every time. So, TechTrends went through her filmography and made a list of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
Best Natalie Portman Movies of All Time
Since Natalie Portman burst onto the scene at a young age, she has featured in a number of movies and television shows. During that time, she has picked up many awards and has established herself as one of the most recognizable actresses in Hollywood. Having such an incredible resume and an excellent career that is still quite strong, let’s take a look at the best must see Natalie Portman performances.
Leon: The Professional 1994
- Genre: Action/Drama
- Director: Luc Besson
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Jean Reno, Gary Oldman, Danny Aiello, Elizabeth Regen, Michael Badalucco
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 73%, IMDb 8.5
Natalie Portman had his debut in the movie Leon directed by Luc Besson, a violent yet surprisingly moving pulp thriller. Portman portrays the role of Mathilda, who is a 12-year-old girl. When her family gets murdered by a DEA agent, jean Reno, who plays a professional and sympathetic hitman, takes her in. She begins to learn his trade and becomes his protégé so she is able to avenge the death of her little brother. While Reno acts tough, Portman is effective, becoming the emotional center of the movie. She proved she is worthy of being named a star following her performance in Leon. Therefore, this is one of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
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Heat 1995
- Genre: Crime/Drama
- Director: Michael Mann
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Val Kilmer, Michael Mann, Ashley Judd
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 88%, IMDb 8.3
Al Pacino and Robert De Niro are put on opposite sides of the law in the movie Heat directed by Michael Mann. Pacino portrays the role of an LAPD detective who is tracking some professional bank robbers. The group’s leader is De Niro. The two have a hard time finding a balance between personal and professional lives. Natalie Portman plays a memorable role of Pacino’s step daughter. Although the movie is three hours long, the tension never gets loosen. Notwithstanding the amazing production value, the movie did not get an Oscar nomination, which is disappointing. However, it is yet one of the best Natalie Portman movies ever.
Beautiful Girls 1996
- Genre: Comedy/Romance
- Director: Ted Demme
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Uma Thurman, Matt Dillon, Timothy Hutton, Michael Rapaport, Lauren Holly
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 79%, IMDb 7.1
Another one of the best Natalie Portman films of all time which is about a group of Gen-Xers coming to their hometown for a high school reunion. Timothy Hutton plays Willie Conway, who is a pianist at a crossroads when it comes to his love life. Natalie Portman portrays the role of Marty, who is the 13-year-old neighbor of Willie. He wished Marty could grow up sooner so they can get married. Portman is able to bring her trademark brains, wit, and charm to her character, forming a tender portrait of adolescent love. Despite the title and the movies’ male perspective, Beautiful Girls is a dramatically rich and nuanced movie.
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Star Wars prequel trilogy 1999, 2002, 2005
- Genre: Sci-fi/Adventure/Action
- Director: George Lucas
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Keira Knightley, Ewan McGregor, Liam Neeson, Hayden Christensen, Christopher Lee, Samuel L. Jackson,
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 51%, IMDb 6.5 / Rotten Tomatoes 65%, IMDb 6.6 / Rotten Tomatoes 79%, IMDb 7.6
Natalie Portman played in the movie Star Wars and went to a galaxy far, far away. Although the quality of these movies are not equal, “The Phantom Menace” (1999), “Attack of the Clones” (2002), and “Revenge of the Sith” (2005) are still entertaining. Portman plays the role of Padme Amidala and brings gravitas to the character. She is Anakin “Darth Vader” Skywalker’s lover and Luke and Leia’s mother. Portman thrived in her career following her portrayal in the Star Wars trilogy and these are among the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
Garden State 2004
- Genre: Romance/Comedy
- Director: Zach Braff
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Zach Braff, Peter Sarsgaard, Michael Weston, Ian Holm, Jim Parsons
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 86%, IMDb 7.4
The movie Garden State is about a man coming back home from the funeral of his mother following being alienated by his family for years. The movie received good reviews, especially for the chemistry between Zach Braff and Natalie Portman. She is a pathological liar who he becomes friends with when he is taking his trip home. Moreover, Portman shows genuine sympathy for Braff’s tragedy while he makes a joke about her dead hamster in an emotional moment. This is still considered one of the best Natalie Portman films ever.
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Closer 2004
- Genre: Romance/Drama
- Director: Mike Nichols
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Clive Owen, Jude Law, Julia Roberts, Nick Hobbs
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 68%, IMDb 7.2
In the movie Closer, which is an adaptation of Patrick Marber’s play set in mid-00s London, Natalie Portman grew up with this role. She plays the role of Alice, who is an American stripper who escaped New York to end her relationship. The story is about four people who do not deserve one another. Two couples who fall in love but drop out of affection, then swap accomplices. They then swap back again and, in that process, they betray one another in ways that humans are proficient enough. Alice steals the show with and makes this one of Natalie Portman greatest movie roles.
V for Vendetta 2005
- Genre: Action/Sci-fi
- Director: James McTeigue
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, John Hurt, Stephen Fry, Stephen Rea
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 73%, IMDb 8.2
One of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time is V for Vendetta, which is a graphic novel by Alan Moore. The story revolves around a TV reporter played by Portman, Evey, who gets rescued by a masked man named V. He started a revolution against totalitarian government’s Tyranny and oppressions spread. In addition to the amazing visual effects and perfect action scenes, Portman performed remarkably well in the movie and won the best Actress at the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, and Golden Schmoes Awards.
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The Other Boleyn Girl 2008
- Genre: Romance/Drama
- Director: Justin Chadwick
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana, Jim Sturgess, Benedict Cumberbatch
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 43%, IMDb 6.7
The movie The Other Boleyn Girl is an adaptation of Philippa Gregory’s novel, which had Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson, a dream casting. It is the story of two sister who were rivals from a young age. Portman performs as Anne, and Johansson as Mary, who compete to win the love of King Henry VIII. In their competition, Mary is able to win his heart and gets married to him, becoming the queen. However, things take a turn and it becomes so entertaining. This is indeed one of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time. Make sure to add this to your watchlist if you are into historical movies.
Black Swan 2010
- Genre: Drama/Thriller
- Director: Darren Aronofsky
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder, Barbara Hershey, Sebastian Stan
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 85%, IMDb 8
Black Swan is arguably the best Natalie Portman movie of all time, where she plays the role of a committed dancer. She is struggling with her sanity after she gets the leading role of Tchaikovsky’s “Swan Lake” for the New York City Ballet company. This Darren Aronofsky’s psychological thriller, Portman won an Oscar. Portman plays the role of Nina, who is brilliant. Although in the #MeToo era the controlling figure using sexual assault as a directing technique is not so complacent, the movie makes the damage a central plank of the character’s breakdown. Portman really deserved the Oscar and this is indeed one of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
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Thor 2011
- Genre: Action/Fantasy
- Director: Kenneth Branagh
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Jaimie Alexander, Kat Dennings
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 77%, IMDb 7
Natalie Portman entered the Marvel world in this American superhero movie about the Mighty Thor. Played by Chris Hemsworth, Thor is an arrogant warrior whose actions start a war. Therefore, he gets exiled to Earth for punishment and has to live with people. When there is a dangerous antagonist attacking Earth, Thor understands the power it takes to be a genuine legend. Natalie Portman portrays the role of a scientist, who is also Thor’s love interest in this Marvel movie. He meets Dr. Jane Foster upon touchdown on Earth and starts falling in love with her. This is among the best Natalie Portman movies of all time and she also appeared in another sequel of the movie.
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Thor: The Dark World 2013
- Genre: Action/Adventure
- Director: Alan Taylor
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Kat Dennings, Zachary Levi, Anthony Hopkins
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 66%, IMDb 6.8
Portman continued her role as Dr, Jane Foster, the astrophysicist and Thor’s love interest in the sequel in year 2013. Because of her amazing portrayal of the character, Portman’s Dr. Foster also appeared in this sequel and will be part of the next Thor movie called Thor: Love and Thunder. However, she will be a strong female superhero. Portman performed amazingly and added this to the list of her best movies of all time.
A Tale of Love and Darkness 2015
- Genre: Drama/History
- Director: Natalie Portman
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Amir Tessler, Gilad Kahana, Shira Haas, Ohad Knoller, Makram Khoury
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 72%, IMDb 6
A Tale of Love and Darkness is an adaptation of Israeli novelist Amos Oz’s memoir, describing the early years of the foundation of Israel. Natalie Portman took another step as she directed this movie and it was her debut. Moreover, she played the role of a young mother, Oz’s mother, Fania. She explored her own Israeli roots in this movie which is the ramification of the Middle East conflict aiming to get past the hurts. Portman shows a controlled and queenly execution of Fania. Therefore, this is among the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
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Jackie 2016
- Genre: Drama/History
- Director: Pablo Larraín
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Greta Gerwig, Peter Sarsgaard, Billy Crudup
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 88%, IMDb 6.7
Natalie Portman received her third Oscar nomination playing in the movie Jackie. This is also another one of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time where she is given the role she was born to play. The movie is a biographical drama that revolves around Jacqueline Kennedy when she was First Lady in the White House. It was also around the time she lost her better half, President John F. Kennedy in 1963. The film shows her pain, grief, and difficult days. Portman performed remarkably as Jackie and portrayed her trauma in the aftermath of her husband’s assassination pretty astonishingly.
Annihilation 2018
- Genre: Sci-fi/Horror
- Director: Alex Garland
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Oscar Isaac, Gina Rodriguez, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tessa Thompson,
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 88%, IMDb 6.8
In the Alex Garland’s fascinating sci-fi movie, Portman plays the role of a biologist who volunteers for a dangerous, secret expedition in a very mysterious zone. In that area, the law of nature does not work and the visual effects and aspirations of the movie is amazing. Portman features alongside some great actors. Along with some of her colleagues, Portman enters the zone to find out what happened to her husband. They see plans and animals that look like they are mutating on the cellular level, a biological process that starts to influence them as well. Portman was magnificent in the movie and we can only hope that she does more of this sort of movies. Annihilation is indeed one of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.
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Vox Lux 2018
- Genre: Drama/Musical
- Director: Brady Corbet
- Stars: Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Raffey Cassidy, Jennifer Ehle, Willem Dafoe, Stacy Martin, Christopher Abbott
- Rating: Rotten Tomatoes 62%, IMDb 5.8
Vox Lux describes the story of a young singer who becomes one of the most promising stars ever after surviving a school shooting. When her stardom and life get mixed up, she begins to struggle with the immense expectations which push her to make some questionable decisions. This somehow portrays Portman’s own life as she became famous at a young age and had to deal with the challenges put in front of her. This might be one of the reasons why she performs so believably and received a lot of praise for her strong performance. Vox Lux is one of the best Natalie Portman movies of all time.