I have been hesitant to write this post. Not so much hesitant as I've been overwhelmed at the idea. But I feel inspired to write and I feel inspired by her and I feel strongly about this film. So, I'm going to do it. For all that feeling in me.
I'll start with the ending. As the credits ominously, slowly flashed their way on and off the bright white screen with the music all gone but for the cruel clapping applause from what felt like the audience I was sitting in, I felt the most overwhelming sense of defeat.... submergence... speechlessness... that has ever flooded my soul. And it was purely induced by the brilliance of the art that is my passion. Film.
I can't possibly do her justice - Natalie Portman - or even him - Vincent Cassel - or the director - Darren Aronoffsky (who I suspected had directed 'Requiem for a Dream' and later found out had, indeed, done so). I was even mighty impressed by and even relieved at the transformation and hatching that came from Mila Kunis (who also played the kid in
Gia).
When asked about the notorious film,
Black Swan, I will always try to describe my utmost respect for and disbelief at the performance that Natalie Portman gives. Having rigorously trained for up to a year to be a convincing prima ballerina and having managed to keep up being a phenomenal, well-tuned, "perfect" (there's a wonderful play on different conceptions of perfection in art in the film) actress, she pulls off a role that I think could easily have been played boring, rigid, anal and, as the plot unfolds, over-sexual. But not for Natalie. No. Natalie became something I've never seen before. In any actor. Sorry, Angelina.
So far, the only negativity I've heard with regards to this masterpiece of a film has been from ballerinas and their teachers, claiming that it "mis-portrays the world of Ballet and ballet companies", it is "clearly" made by someone who "hasn't researched the life of ballerinas enough", and that it is a gross "stereotype" based on the drugs, sex, and psychology of "American dance companies".
Well, firstly, it
is a story set in America, it
is a story about a ballerina who experiences situations of drugs, sex and psychopathic, lunatic craziness, AND our ballerina
is a member of a dance company. Boom.
Secondly, I doubt the aforementioned critic-ballerinas have researched into the world of film-making, story-telling and interpretation for film. Perhaps the director's intention was to comment on the 'stereotype' of American dance companies and that the negative lumpy bits therein are the exact parts he had hoped to highlight (perhaps even directly aimed at these critic-ballerinas). I don't know Darren and I don't know ballet. But I do believe that this film is something horrific and terrific and fantastic and just plain brilliant and that it deserves the credit that I feel it has earned itself.
Hey, that's just me. NOT. I've seen a good 20 facebook status's about this film - all positive. And I haven't even reached the thousand-friends mark yet.
Over-and-out.
