Natalie Portman’s directorial debut, A Tale of Love and Darkness, premiered at Cannes last year and was relatively well-received. Based on Israeli author Amos Oz’s 2002 autobiography of the same name, the Hebrew-language drama tells the story of the formation of the state of Israel in the late ‘40s through the eyes of a young boy and his mentally ill mother, played by Portman (who also wrote the film), in war-torn Jerusalem. The film has a U.S. release date set for August 19, and you can either watch the new trailer above or the international trailer below with or without English subtitles — not that the language barrier makes the film’s emotional gravity any less moving. You think Portman and Jonathan Safran Foer discussed the film at all? (Obviously.)
