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Natalie Portman is one of those pretty faces that is, well, more than a pretty face. Talented, civic-minded, undeniably intelligent, and sophisticated beyond her years, Portman has been dubbed the “new Audrey Hepburn.”

Portman was born in Jerusalem in 1981 to Avner and Shelley Hershlag. Her father, a fertility doctor, and her mother, an artist, moved from Israel when their daughter was three to Washington D.C., and then later, New York. At the age of 11, she was discovered by an agent at a pizza parlor. Initially, she was pushed into modeling. However, strong-willed and independent-minded even then, Portman decided to pursue acting.

Her debut performance came in the movie Leon in 1994. However, this role, which some felt was too “Lolita”-like in its tone, caused Portman to later refuse roles that were too sexually-oriented or that required nudity.

In 1997, she did in fact turn down a role in the movie Lolita because of her strong feelings against youth playing overtly sexual roles in films. Similarly, she turned down the role of “Juliet” in the famous 1996 version of Romeo and Juliet because of the age difference between herself and Leonardo DiCaprio. In Anywhere But Here, Portman turned down the role of Ann August because of a nude scene with Corbin Allred; Susan Sarandon vouched for the necessity of Portman as her co-star and the scene was rewritten.

A straight-“A” student all through high school, Portman now studies at Harvard. She likes math, due to its clear-cut system of solving problems. She speaks five languages fluently — Hebrew, English, French, German, and Japanese. Other talents include playing the piano and ballet. One of her favorite authors is Dave Eggers. She aspires to follow in her father’s footsteps and go into the medical field.

Interestingly, Portman has had several music-related tributes to her. She has had songs named after her by bands TeamSleep and Ozma. She also has CD recorded for charity bearing her name called Love: A Tribute to Natalie Portman.

Her most famous role was perhaps Queen Amidala in Star Wars Trilogy. While these movies perhaps portray Portman’s sense of fun and her diversity as an actress, movies such as Garden State are better suited to Portman’s arena.

Portman has the elegance of royalty, but her acting talent makes her suited to roles in which she plays characters with likeable flaws. It’s easy to see Portman as a woman without flaws, but more “human” roles bring her closer to earth and to fans’ hearts.