The Case for Black Swannage

Wow, two amazing movies in a row.

Last week, it was The King’s Speech; this week, Black Swan. Like the King’s Speech, Black Swan hangs on the performance of the lead actor, and Natalie Portman, used to wearing ridiculous outfits as Amygdala* from the Star Wars films, is spectacular in the role of Nina, prima ballerina of a New York ballet company. On her slight shoulders and in her large eyes lies the heart and soul of the film, even if they are both broken and fragmented.


Black Swan is almost the opposite of the King’s Speech in many ways, in that the King’s Speech had one man asked to assume a position of power being rescued from his shortcomings by loyal friends and family, whereas Black Swan is the story of a ballet dancer who attains her dream of being the lead in Swan Lake only to find the pressure isolating and overwhelming.

The supporting characters are all wonderfully ambiguous: is Vincent Cassel’s director a lecherous seducer or a man incredibly passionate and dedicated to his craft? Is Mila Kunis’s beautiful (this is no Meg Griffin role for Klunis) “wild card” ballerina a happy go lucky (how I hate that phrase after the movie of the same name) free spirit, or a manipulative schemer determined to be the lead? Is Barbara Hershey’s mom a “wind beneath my wings” caring parent or a head case? And what really happens with Winona Ryder’s fading ballerina character?

But most questions are reserved for Nina. We follow her story from her perspective, the “unsteadycam” used to occasionally nauseating effect to show how things in her world get slightly unhinged from time to time. But is what we see that she is seeing real? What exactly is it that we see? It’s all very confusing, occasionally Lynchian, and utterly engrossing. Of no doubt is the power of the score, ballet inspired and (from my limited knowledge) possibly all from the Swan Lake ballet itself. In a large dark cinema with a powerful surround sound system, the music washed over me, and drowned out anything anyone else might have said – not that I can imagine anyone being distracted from the film, so hypnotic is its influence.



I am also severely limited in my knowledge of what makes good dancing, so I have no idea of the merits (or not) of what I saw on stage. We are told Nina is a perfectionist just lacking the spark of passion and fire needed for the darker aspects of the Black Swan role – the aspects the director wants to unleash for a performance that will save the ailing company. Whatever the true merit of the dancing, its really Portman’s face that conveys the shifting in emotions, from competent perfectionist, to a person uncertain in the leading role that they have been asked to take, and then the occasional burst of self confident fire that the director sees lurking underneath and tries to bring to the fore.

I have tried my best to express the power of the film. Darren Aronofsky has done an amazing job keeping the whole thing together, allowing Portman to shine and highlighting the beauty of the ballet in amongst the horror of Nina’s obsession. While The King’s Speech was an amazing film because of the actors, Black Swan has amazing actors in what is an incredible filmatic experience. If this doesn’t win the Best Picture Oscar, then I would be incredibly surprised – though I have yet to see True Grit.

Verdict: An incredible yet disturbing experience, with extraordinary performances from all the actors though (of course) especially Portman. Black Swan has that extra kick though in an engrossing, intriguing and confusing style that elevates the whole experience above purely a “good acting” film. I am reluctant to give any film a maximum score, but I will have to top The King’s Speech by giving Black Swan 9.5 tutus out of 10.