A talented but reserved ballet dancer suffers a spiralling breakdown when she faces the most challenging role of her career.
A mischievous genre bendre weaving horror and thriller into psychological drama, Black Swan hits the ground sprinting from the opening scenes and doesn’t let up, bombarding you with crazed sound and imagery, cheekily toying with emotions and expectations along the way.
Natalie Portman is garnering the lion’s share of attention for her lead performance and unsurprisingly so—such a talent and such a committed performance is a huge contribution to the film’s appeal. But accolades should also be heaped on auteur director Darren Aronofsky for his vision, drive, bold experimentalism and yet deft craft, producing a very special, exciting film, and not for the first time. Every element not only works but excels; writing, directing, acting, art direction, cinematography, music, effects; all areas would be deserving of major awards. And, when you open your mind, your eyes even wider and let the experience wash over you, the thrilling whole is even greater than the sum of its parts.
20th Jan 2011 | Official site | On IMDb
