Film: Black Swan

What most sticks in my mind about Black Swan is how weird it is. I mean its a great film but my god is it screwed up.

Natalie Portman plays Nina, a 20 something ballet dancer who dreams of being the lead in Swan Lake; however when she gets the role her quest for perfection and the duality of playing both the white and black swans lead her down a dangerous road. Portman gives a flawless performance, greatly portraying Nina’s struggle as she explores her dark side to improve her black swan. Combined with Aronfosky’s direction, Nina’s descent into madness is perfectly intertwined with the story of the ballet as she starts to believe her understudy (Lily, played by Mila Kunis) is out to steal her role turning her into the black swan. If Portman doesn’t take home an Oscar for this performance I will be shocked.

Mila Kunis is a delight as Lily, especially when seen through Nina’s eyes as scheming and manipulative (and at one point lesbian). Winona Ryder also makes great use of a limited role as the previous prima ballerina who now feels worthless and harbours a hatred for Nina. However, there performances pale in comparison to that of Natalie Portman who effectively steals the show.

Aronfosky’s direction is also nearly flawless, using elements of light and dark and isolated cramped spaces to emphasis Nina’s madness. Particularly interesting is the use of mirrors which hang in a large majority of the scenes creating obvious messages of duality. Particularly interesting is the mirror in Nina’s apartment which appears to be cracked, hinting at events near the films conclusion. The film features many bizarre scenes, which people familiar with his work should expect but as always he handles these scenes so well that they appear real. At times it can be heavily over-sexed and at other times slightly resemble porn, however the sex scenes are mostly well handled showing Nina’s dark side perfectly.

He directs the ballet scenes with a fierce intensity forcing the audience to view how much effort goes into every choreographed step. Scenes showing the injuries Nina gets while performing further suggest that this is a series physical art-form. In the final scenes as Nina performs Swan Lake for the first time we feel everything she feels, the strain, the waves of emotion and the fade to white among a sea of applause is so rewarding.

There are many who will be put off by this film as with any that Aronfosky directs but it certainly is a work of art and people should at the very least give it a chance.