MESSAGE IN THE MOVIES

Black Swan Rated R

Directed by Darren Aronofsky.  Starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel.

Photo © 2011 Fox Searchlight
Movie Review by Rev. Bruce Batchelor Glader

If you want to see a great film about an obsessive ballerina under the control of a egocentric director, by all means take the time to rent the 1948 Michael Powell/ Emeric Pressburger masterpiece The Red Shoes.  You won’t be sorry. 

However, you may want to think twice about going to see Black Swan, this year’s attempt to revisit the basic themes of that movie. 

Instead of the musical and visual treat of he Red Shoes, Black Swan offers a psychological tale about a young ballerina’s quest to get in touch with her dark side in order to play dual roles in a production of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. 

Once you get past the obvious fact that an accomplished performer doesn’t have to succumb to personal depravity in order to play a dark character, it’s clear that this movie is nothing less than a classy horror film, filled with shock cuts, a few brief moments of sexual silliness, and a few gross-out scenes of bodily maiming. 

Natalie Portman is outstanding as Nina, the ballerina in question, in a star turn that requires her to be in virtually every scene (since the film is told through her point-of-view). 

But the film seems to have no particular love for ballet, the world of ballet dancing, or of women in general. 

The female characters, including Nina’s controlling stage mother (Barbara Hershey), the rival/friend (Mila Kunis) and the washed-up former ingénue (Winona Ryder) are all pretty stereotypical. 

And Thomas (Cassel), the Mephistopheles-like artistic director, is allowed to be brutal, demanding and exploitative without much judgment. 

If you can tolerate the cheesy premise, Black Swan may divert you for a couple of hours – it’s a well-made movie. But it is just as likely to offend and disappoint.



Pitchfork/Halo Ratings:
Two halos.
A standout performance by Natalie Portman cannot make a white swan out of this ugly duckling of a script.

Four pitchforks.
Consistently decadent, with scenes of physical abuse, sexual promiscuity and drug use.

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