Obsession, Art, and a Broken Mind – Black Swan (Movie Review)

“The pressure of perfection.

The story of Nina, a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life, like all those in her profession, is completely consumed with dance. She lives with her retired ballerina mother Erica who zealously supports her daughter’s professional ambition. When artistic director Thomas Leroy decides to replace prima ballerina Beth MacIntyre for the opening production of their new season, Swan Lake, Nina is his first choice.” – Letterboxd Synopsis

My love of movies come from my mother. When I was a child, she would always be doing her hair with some movie playing on the TV and I was always around. This was one of those movies that I have some vivid memories of watching with her as a kid, but I really needed to fully watch for myself. It is right up my alley, a physiological horror movie that takes a lot of real life elements and inspiration and deals with the stress and self torment that performers or anyone who has high expectations and aspirations deal with in a competitive space. This movie was amazing.

This movie falls into that genre of, I guess you could call it obsessive artistry. My mind immediately goes to Whiplash as a comparison. The thing with movies that deal with this is it’s so interesting to gleam into these spaces that I personally don’t know anything about. I know nothing about professional ballerinas and that world. So it was interesting to get this, albeit movie version, glimpse into that world. I did some very quick looks into this movie and some of its history and controversy. It was interesting to learn that this fictional company and its leader were based on real people and a real company in New York which had its real life share of controversies. But movies like this are automatically so intense and anxiety inducing because they not only thrust you first hand into this competitive world, but they show it through the lens of a character that wants it all. That wants to be the best of the best. Seeing the things that Nina would put herself through, the stress and anxiety was palpable through the screen. Nina is such a great character and I love me a good unreliable narrator. This whole movie I was racking my brain just like she was wondering what was real and what wasn’t. What really happened and what didn’t? It’s such a scary thought to not be aligned with your own mind, thoughts, and memories. This movie portrayed that masterfully. I loved the parallels between the story of the Black Swan, and Nina’s story as a person, but also her story as trying to become the Black Swan that she needs to be to perform.

Natalie Portman absolutely acted her ass off in this movie. You can just feel her anxiety and ambition a mile away. But then there’s always that hint of sadness. There’s some interesting subtext concerning whether this was the path that she really wanted for herself, which is interesting because ultimately she’s here. She is breaking her body to do this, she is (or maybe already had) breaking her mind to achieve this prestigious goal. Which on one hand is admirable, but on the other it will always raise the question of is it really worth it? Was worth becoming somebody you aren’t? Was it worth suffering through genuine sexual and power dynamic abuse? Was it worth suffering through the mental anguish and torment from her mother? Was it worth all the self esteem and self worth issues? When this movie reaches its beautiful climax, what is framed as a triumphant and beautiful moment on stage for her career is also dark, twisted and ultimately sad. Natalie Portman did such a wonderful job portraying all of that.

This movie almost plays out like a musical and I know that was intentional. The score specially is straight out of a stage play or performance, especially when a heightened moment happens. It’s really wonderful. It’s a beautiful-looking movie as well, shot perfectly and the visual effects are still top-notch. Like, the climax of the movie is beautiful. I know there was a lot of controversy regarding Natalie and her stunt double, Sarah Lane, and properly crediting who did what in regards to the dancing and real criticism from professional ballerina’s over Natalie’s dancing. Look, to my completely untrained eye, it all looked amazing, and it actually sparked my interest in seeing a show one day. I think telling a story with nothing but instrumental and dance is so cool. In regards to the controversy, it still seems to be up in the air with who did what, but it seems to be pretty concrete that Sarah did the final scene and bravo to her. That was absolutely amazing performance.

So yeah, I loved this movie. I’m glad I got to fully experience it in my adult life. What makes this movie so effective is just how real and grounded it feels thanks to its performances and the way it was shot. It culminates to make the journey that Nina goes through something truly horrific. Not being able to trust your own mind is something that the vast majority of people that have lived and will live won’t seriously ever have to think or worry about. So watching her just unravel, and unfold, and succumb to it all in the name of achieving a prestigious goal is really something. And while the end result was a beautiful work of art, the road to get there was horrifying and dark. This is a classic movie that I won’t be forgetting about anytime soon.

Black Swan: 9/10