Some will hail “Black Swan,” as a cinematic masterpiece. They will find this movie to be a profound, intelligent, suspense driven drama that will go down as a classic through the ages. While others will call it indie garbage and an excuse to watch Natalie Portman strokes her va-jay-jay for two hours. My opinion of the movie rests somewhere in the middle as it is not the greatest movie ever created and also not the worst. Coming out of the theater, all I could utter was “Eh.” I know that others will argue with me about my apathetic review of this movie and others will agree with it. I seem to have the same problem with all of Darren Aronofsky’s ("Requiem for a Dream", "The Wrestler") films. I know I will always rest on the “I do not get it” part of the audience when it comes to these types of films. A film like this, you have to approach with the pace of an over analytical art critic strolling through the Louvre, which does not make for an entertaining afternoon. Instead, it makes for one with yawns and images you cannot understand. At times, the movie shoves the fact that it has deeper meaning and practically screams that it thinks itself a visual masterpiece. This makes it at times come off as pretentious.
The film follows Nina (Natalie Portman), a ballet dancer who soon finds herself in the lead role of Swan Lake. Nina is selected because of her perfection for the white swan part of the production, but slowly loses her mind and transforms into the part she so desperately desires—the black swan. Mila Kunis ("The Book of Eli") also plays the seductive Lily, who just adds paranoia to Nina, fueling her delusions. It is a trip through the rabbit hole.
The film is average in the sense of story, is filled with unnecessary scenes, but the cinematography is top notch. Some shots are especially remarkable. The use of mirrors is equally as astonishing. The way it is filmed is unique and makes the film truly art. Yet, even art can leave one uninspired and with a sense of “eh.” The film is nothing special and I know others will argue. It is not necessarily bad, just not special. You never get the feeling of “I am watching a masterpiece.” At times I felt that my money was spent on soft core porn with a suspenseful story. It leaves a lot for the viewer to interpret. All in all, it is like watching abstract art by a famous artist with a name you cannot pronounce, and at the end of the day you still do not know the point of, dry.
By V-Dawg
