Dir: Brady Corbet USA 2019 1hr 55mins

With: Natalie Portman, Jude Law

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In 1999, teenage Celeste (Raffey Cassidy) survives a violent high-school shooting. After singing at a memorial service, she transforms into a burgeoning pop star with the help of her songwriter sister (Stacy Martin) and talent manager (Jude Law). Celeste’s meteoric rise to fame and concurrent loss of innocence dovetails with a shattering terrorist attack on the nation, elevating the young powerhouse to a new kind of celebrity: American icon and global superstar.

By 2017, adult Celeste (Natalie Portman) is mounting a comeback after a scandalous incident that derailed her career. Touring in support of her sixth album, a compendium of anthems entitled “Vox Lux”, the indomitable, foul-mouthed pop savior must overcome her personal and familial struggles to navigate motherhood, madness and monolithic fame in the Age of Terror.

Writer-director Brady Corbet’s follow-up to his striking debut THE CHILDHOOD OF A LEADER is a timely and unique examination of modern celebrity, featuring new songs by Sia and an original score by Scott Walker.

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★★★★

"Natalie Portman gives her fiercest, most memorable performance since Black Swan"

The Independent