Black Swan

Black Swan was a heavy hitter at award ceremonies this year, and with good reason. Originally, I was sceptical about it. The trailers were poor in my opinion, and they didn't sell the film to me. I assumed it was another pretentious film, shot at strange angles, with colour playing a big role. Something we have seen many times before, and something that doesn't particularly strike me as innovative, immersive, or memorable in any light. How wrong I was.

On a basic level, the plot revolves around the life of a determined, single-minded ballet dancer Nina (played expertly by Natalie Portman). She wants to move up in the ranks of her ballet company, become a key performer in plays, and be renowned for her dancing prowess and ability.

I cannot praise her enough. All preconceptions I had about her performances were blown away, this is the defining role of her career. If she tops this, it will be outstandingly brilliant. Not once in the duration of the film was I not transfixed on the story, the character, and ultimately, eagerly awaiting the conclusion.

Likewise, other actors and actresses played impressive roles. The story predominantly revolved around 4 persons, Nina, Nina's mother, Lily, and Thomas. I thought having Lily played by Mila Kunis was a strange decision at first. But again, the casting was spot on here. She perfectly balanced her role between suspicion and innocence, rather like Portman. Every notion and idea we have of Lily changes from one scene to the next. The complexity of the film is shown in its ability to constantly change and adapt our conception of character's personas. Thomas, as well, played by Vincet Cassel, is a magnificantly engrossing, compelx character.

The film switches from a comedy, with the audience laughing several times, to a horror, with a women in the audience literally screaming at a scene. Remarkable. You just don't know what to expect. As the film decendes into madness, it is so gripping and so evocatively conveyed by the imagery of differing amounts of black and white surrounding characters and environments, that you simply cannot look away.

I really didn't want to give any of the plot away in this review, so I hope it isn't too brief. I just want to convince whoever reads this to watch the film - now.

Story - 10
Sound - 8
Acting - 10
Immersive - 9

Overall - 9