Vincent Cassel, Natalie Portman and Darren Aronofski at the premiere of Black Swan, during the Venice film festival. Photograph: Kurt Krieger

Vincent Cassel, Natalie Portman and Darren Aronofski at the premiere of Black Swan, during the Venice film festival. Photograph: Kurt Krieger

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Four days in to the Venice film festival and critics are happy. There have been some good films and, crucially, an interesting mix.

The competition, to be judged by a jury chaired by Quentin Tarantino, opened with Darren Aranofsky's psychosexual ballet thriller, Black Swan. The film features a central performance from Natalie Portman, which is already being talked about as having Oscar potential.

Artist Julian Schnabel showcased Miral, an arguably simplistic drama addressing 40 years of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, which could do well in the US.

The event's first French entry, Anthony Cordier's Happy Few, with its repeated devil-may-care sex and nudity, had journalists falling over themselves in praise of its nouvelle vague 2010 artistry.