If you've got a Newsweek magazine subscription, you can read all about what it is that causes actors playing crazy roles to be "shoo-in for [an] Oscar".
Ramin Setoodeh, writing for Newsweek magazine, said he reckons Black Swan actress Natalie Portman is guaranteed a win "because she played a crazy chick".
Women apparently enjoy watching crazy female characters on the big screen because they can believe they are better than she is, while male audiences tend to be attracted to the notion of the girl being "helpless".
"Actresses say they enjoy playing characters who've gone around the bend because it allows them a chance to stretch [themselves]," Setoodeh writes in Newsweek magazine.
The writer questions why the people haven't questioned the issues raised in Black Swan and their accuracy with regards to mental health.
Discussing this point, New York psychiatrist Sharon Packer tells Newsweek magazine: "I think it brings attention to how prevalent eating disorders are or how perfection can drive someone to the brink. The psychiatric disorders do the damage."
Natalie Portman recently won a Golden Globe Award for her portrayal of ballerina Nina in Darren Aronofsky's Black Swan.
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Posted by Donnie Bachan