There is a fear among critics on tackling the unknown. Ballet takes a back seat in this beautifully shot film. First this is no Wrestler that film had firm legs. This was more or less riding on the wave of the questionable scene in the film and some editing techniques.
Darren Aronofsky has been reinventing himself time and time again. The studios have finally come to terms with his artistry. They have channeled his low budget films and marketed them like a big budget ones. Every film seems to hold a place in a director’s shelf life. This one seems to be a little too loosely bound. The film talks about letting go and getting things perfect, but seems to looses steam in the second half of its narrative.
Film has certainly turned into an actor’s medium. There have still been some strong exceptions to the case. Winter’s Bone and Social Network soar above the actor’s performance and reaches dizzying heights. Darren should not have dependent on his star like in the case of Mickey Rourke. Mickey towered and endeared at the same time. The same was less pronounced with Darren‘s star in this film. She was the loose link in an exceptional written story by Andres Heinz. It just didn’t get the screen translation he had hoped for.
Black Swan is a tribute to some age old filmmakers. There is really nothing new here. If it wasn’t for the unchartered territory of ballet the story telling seems quite placid. There is also a lot of talk about the performance by Natalie Portman. It is more of a marketing gimmick that is all. She seems to sulk and whisper most of the time. She tries hard to change into her own with supporting characters giving her directions to go.
It is in the supporting performances things begin to soar. Winona Ryder and Barbara Hershey push the film above all the sizeable flaws. They should have invested more time on their characters. It would have been more interesting viewing. The director was a little uncertain on when to juxtapose reality and the imaginary. The necessary effect in films of this genre was missing. Roman Polanski and Hitchcock were much more precise in going about this effect.
There is a beautiful line said in the film by Tomas the only person standing in your way is you. It also applies to both the director and his muse in this one.
[rating:7/10]
Good review. I disagree but you certainly know what you’re talking about.