Movie Review: The Black Swan

Thrilling. Beautiful. Disturbing. Those were just a few words that came to mind when I left the theater. I've liked Natalie Portman since she was a wee thing in "The Professional ". She's an incredibly talented and dedicated actress who always gets the part right. As Nina in "The Black Swan", she proved that she's getting better with age. I didn't see Natalie in this move, I saw Nina, a tortured young ballerina striving to prove that she can be the Swan Queen. Watching this movie made me realize how difficult it can be to maintain your composure under undue stress and pressure. Sometimes...people crack. The costumes in this movie were ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS (thanks Rodarte!). I can see myself sporting wispy tulle, cute pastel shrugs and ballerina flats come Spring. Well maybe not pastels but...anyway. Without giving too much away, I will say that you need a strong stomach to see this movie because some parts were a tad gory. The lesbian scenes weren't my cup of tea but that's because I have a heteronoramtive mindset. Mila Kunis was stellar as "the bad gal" and Winona Ryder won me over with her wonderful (though brief) performance as the tragic and crestfallen washed up prima ballerina. All in all, this was a 4 star film in my opinion. I've loved ballet since a field trip in elementary school saw me enraptured by tutu-ed divas dancing and leaping across the stage as sugar plum fairies in "The Nutcracker". If you like pyscho-thrillers, ballet, classical music, beautiful costumes, stunning cinematography and excellent editing/directing then you'll love this movie. Check it out and be prepared to be creeped out, lol.




XOXO