It's hard to say how one feels about The Black Swan. Can one really enjoy a film that is nothing but unrelieved misery, especially when it isn't clear what's real and what's imagined? And how easy is it to root for a heroine who suffers from anorexia, paranoia, kleptomania, frigidity, sexual confusion, and whatever the medical name is for people who like to defile their own bodies? The star, Natalie Portman, was very good as the tormented Nina, though I never felt I was seeing first-class dancing as one did in the most famous ballet film, The Red Shoes. Still it's nice to know that someone even creates a ballet film during this culturally arid decade. Plus there were two other reasons to like this film: the always-worth watching Barbara Hershey as Nina's mother and Winona Ryder as the bitter prima ballerina who preceded Nina. Both actresses suffered what I assumed are imaginary Carrie-like attacks from a delusional Nina as did her rival at the ballet Lily (Mila Kunis) who was or was not a caring friend. Other scenes seemed to pay homage to the Roman Polanski film Repulsion. Interestingly, like a comparable character in The Red Shoes, the male lead Vincent Cassel was not attractive and not the least bit sexy so I can understand Nina's reluctance to put out. So while it was worth seeing, it didn't leave me with any special insights or empathies. The most complimentary thing I can say about this film is that it made me want to see a really good production of Swan Lake.
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