THE BLACK SWAN
FILM: THE BLACK SWAN – 2010
This psychological drama involving the disintegration of a prima ballerina is chilling and disturbing. The search for excellence beyond all reason is certainly a cautionary tale for those who pursue it and those who encourage them.
The vehicle for this crackup is apt; an alternate take on the ballet, “Swan Lake” in which the white swan and the black swan are danced by the same ballerina.
Nina is a long-member of the corps of the ballet company attached to Lincoln Center. When the prima ballerina is forced to retire, the master of the corps announces that he will be casting the dual role within the company. Nina wants very much to get this plum role but the corps master tells her only her while swan is good enough. She goes to see him to change his mind but he again says she lacks the passion of the alter ego. He kisses her and she bites him. He is encouraged by this bite and gives her the part.
Meanwhile, a ballerina joins the company from San Francisco. She is everything Nina is not. The psychological disintegration becomes very evident as Lily seems to befriend Nina. It is getting hard for us to distinguish what is psychosis from what is real.
There are fine performances by Natalie Portman as the unhinged dancer and Mila Kunis as the uninhibited new arrival. Barbara Hershey is a frightening stage mother and Winona Ryder becomes increasingly macabre as Nina falls apart.
Portman won an Oscar as best actress in 2010.
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This entry was posted on January 19, 2012 at 4:29 pm and is filed under Uncategorized with tags "The Black Swan" Obsessive-Compulsive, barbara hershey, mental illness, mental illness and the arts, mila kunis, natalie portman, Swan Lake, winona ryder. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
