Black Swan

 When Black Swan was released back in 2010, I was intrigued by the marketing for it. I wasn’t familiar with any of Aronofsky’s work, though I owned DVD copies of Pi and Requiem for a Dream which I’d not yet watched, but this film looked absolutely nuts in the best way. Plus I’d been a big fan of Natalie Portman’s since The Phantom Menace was released when I was 7. I was completely mesmerized in the theater and ended up seeing the film two more times during its theatrical run and bought the Blu-Ray as soon as it was released. In short, I really fucking love this movie.

Black Swan was written by Mark Heyman (The Skeleton Twins), Andre Heinz (Origin of the Species), and John McLaughlin (Hitchcock) based on a story by Heinz. Black Swan was directed by Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler) and was released on Dec. 3, 2010. Black Swan was made on a budget of $13,000,000, made $1,443,809 upon opening, and went on to make $329,398,046 worldwide. Black Swan received largely positive reviews upon release and went on to earn several Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best Director and a Best Actress win for Portman.

Black Swan follows Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman, V for Vendetta), who is chosen to dance the dual roles of the White and Black Swans in Swan Lake. As she progresses through the rehearsal process she is pushed by her toxic director (Vincent Cassel, Elizabeth), overbearing mother (Barbara Hershey, The Portrait of a Lady), self-appointed rival (Mila Kunis, That 70’s Show), and herself to extremes. 

In the ten years since this film was released I’ve watched it many times and I get a new appreciation for it everytime. It’s an excellent indictment of the culture of art that allows creators (frequently white men) to push the people working for them to the breaking point for the sake of “perfection”. As a young adult (I was 18 when the film was released) I didn’t quite get these themes, but in my years in the theatre I’ve witnessed (and been a victim of) some of the behavior exhibited by characters in this film and tolerated for the sake of “genius”. 

Outside of it’s real world criticisms, Black Swan is an incredibly well-made film. Aronofsky’s direction is excellent, particularly his use of mirrors. The performances across the board are incredible. It’s pretty easy to praise Portman, but I want to give shoutouts to Hershey and Kunis for their performances (both of which I think were worthy of Supporting Actress nominations). 

Outside of its technical achievements, Black Swan tells a story that, despite the horror of it, is extremely recognizable to anyone who works in a creative field. Nina’s experiences may be grotesques (and possibly in her head) but they are extremely relatable. The horror of Black Swan is both specific and general.

Rating: 5 perfect performances out of 5

Other Observations:

• Does the Dog Dies? No! The swan’s survival is questionable, but the dogs survive.

• Harrison’s Favorite Scare: The paintings screaming at Nina during her breakdown.

• Despite the dark tone of the film, Black Swan also has a fun sense of humor. Most of the humor comes from Kunis, particularly in the scene when she realizes that Nina had a sex dream about her (which is also refreshingly free of gay panic).

• Next Week: In honor of what would have been the release of Nia DaCosta’s Candyman, I will be revisiting the original Candyman.