Natalie Portman: Women at Cannes are expected to behave differently than men

Natalie Portman starrer May December recently premiered att the 76 Cannes International Film Festival. Along with Portman, the film also features  Julianne Moore and Charles Melton in prominent roles. In a conversation, Portman discusses the discrepancy at Cannes while sharing insights about the film. 

In May December, Natalie Portman plays an actress who travels to Maine to study the life of Moore's character, whom she's set to play in a film.

As per Variety, Moore and Melton portray as a married couple whose 20-year age gap inspired a national tabloid scandal. As they plan to send their twin girls off to college, the family dynamic begins to buckle as Portman delves into their past.
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Given America's obsession with scandal, Portman says there was no shortage of material to mine for inspiration.

"We had all the inspirational tabloid materials that existed. There was a book with a crazy title, like "Punished for Love," or something like that," she recalled. "We had those resources at our fingertips, which was helpful at getting background."

Portman describes the film as a study of "the different roles we play in different environments." She observes that discrepancy is particularly on display at the Cannes Film Festival, where women are mandated to wear heels on the red carpet.

"Even here, the different ways we, as women, are expected to behave at this festival even compared to men... how we're supposed to look, how we're supposed to carry ourselves," she said. "The expectations are different for you all the time. It affects how you behave, whether you are buying into or rejecting it. You're defined by the social structures upon you," she added