Black Swan (2010)
“He picked me, mommy! I’m the new swan queen!” – Nina.
Black Swan (2010)
Directed by: Darren Aronofsky
Written by: Mark Heyman, Andres Heinz, John J. McLaughlin
Starring: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel
Wow. I’ve been skirting around Black Swan for ten years, as I was very aware of its unhinged script, and wasn’t in the mood to be psychologically body-slammed for 108 minutes. Well, I finally watched it, and can confirm that it’s an extremely disturbing film. In fact, outside of Joker, I can't think of another movie that made me feel more uncomfortable throughout. However, this isn’t a bad thing – fantastic performances, beautiful cinematography and an emotional rollercoaster make this an incredibly enticing package.
The film follows Nina (Portman), an obsessive but socially deficient professional dancer who wins the lead role in a production of ‘Swan Lake’. Petrified of failure, Nina struggles to maintain her sanity while negotiating her worried mother, newcomer Lily (Kunis), and critical dance instructor Thomas (Cassel).
Watching Black Swan is a unique viewing experience, and this translated to box office success ($329 million off a $13 million budget) and overwhelming critical acclaim. Portman won the Academy Award for Best Actress, with the film also receiving four other nominations. So what makes Black Swan so unique? How does it set itself apart from other psychological thrillers? I believe you can boil it down to three key factors:
Setting – This seems simple, but there’s something masterful about setting the film at a professional dance company. Not only is it already a competitive and hostile environment with an inbuilt power structure, Aronofsky utilises the classical ballet music from Swan Lake throughout the film to manipulate your emotions. A non-stop classical score played over a stressful story results in an ominous and draining experience for the viewer. The hardships facing highly insulated ballet dancers also lends to the believability of Nina’s meltdown, with her physical deterioration due to injuries and eating disorders foreshadowing her psychological collapse.
First Person Perspective - As the viewer, you experience the film from Nina’s perspective. Therefore once you realise she is slowly losing touch with reality, you’re unable to trust anything that you observe. Can you trust Lily’s motives within the film? Is she a friend or a foe? Did that scene really just happen? This disorientation from a first-person-view is extremely trippy, and adds a lingering sense of unease to the flick.
Deterioration into Horror - Aronofsky is a master at manipulating your emotions, with the score, camera work, and script all contributing to a turbulent experience for the viewer. However, he shines here by accelerating Nina’s sanity spiral as the film progresses, which leads to the film devolving into more of a horror movie for the final third. Nina begins hallucinating, and the script goes completely off the rails as the story crescendos to a horrific conclusion. I’m not a massive horror fan, and this got legitimately spooky towards the end. As I said, it’s a disturbing film, but you can’t look away.
These three aspects are what make Black Swan a one-of-one – I’ve never seen another film quite like this, which is what you’re looking for from any thriller film. Interestingly, Aronofsky originally conceptualised the project in 2000, with the ten-year writing period coming across in the multi-layered symbolism (power, control, confidence, self worth) laced throughout the plot.
Finally, the extended cast are fabulous throughout. Kunis was an inspired choice as the bubbly and carefree Lily, Cassel is fantastic as the predatory Thomas, Barbara Hershey is impressive as Nina’s mother, and Winona Ryder even pops up as an older dancer being forced out of the company. Ensemble cast aside, Natalie Portman is unquestionably the standout star of the film, with a chilling performance as the unhinged Nina. Not only was she believable as a professional ballerina (due to extensive training prior to filming), I spent the entire movie trying to decide if Nina was a victim or a villain. So yes, Portman was brilliant, and the character of Nina would likely have been ruined in the hands of a lesser actress.
After dodging this for a decade, I’m happy I finally got around to watching Black Swan. It’s an acquired taste, sure, and I wouldn't say I had a ‘fun’ time while watching it, but it was so unique and different, with stellar cinematography and acting. Similar to a rollercoaster – you might not enjoy it at the time, but in retrospect you’ll cherish the memories. On that bizarre metaphor, I highly recommend this to anyone who loves a good thriller.
Rating: 8/10
YouTube Video Recap: