Review of Black Swan (2010) by Jennetp — 10 Jan 2011

As I was watching "Black Swan," I started counting the times the camera lingered on Natalie Portman staring pointlessly at herself in a mirror and lost count at eight billion. Guess that means I'm not one of the many crying "bravo" for this film.

I love Vincent Cassel, but here he's wasted as one more catalyst for the flowering of Natalie Portman's neurosis into capital-A Art. It's interesting to me that Winona Ryder showed up as the has-been dancer because Portman seemed to base her character on the timid mental patient Ryder played in "Girl, Interrupted" (watchable only for Angelina Jolie's much more dynamic sociopath).

The difference here is that we experience manifestations of Portman's disintigration and are clearly supposed to wonder whether she is, in fact, being sabotaged. That would be the thriller part. But it's evident from the first 10 minutes of the movie that this chick is way too screwed up for anyone to bother sabotaging; all an intelligent rival would have to do is stand around, smoke a cigarette or two, and wait for her to self-destruct.

So "thrills," for me, along with surprises, were in pretty short supply. I was mildly interested in how she'd finally sex up her Black Swan (hint: no sex involved) but rolled my eyes when it finally happened.

I'm happy for all the people who swooned with delight at this film, but I was definitely not one of them. Plusses: some nice dancing. Vincent Cassel putting the mack on Portman then walking off in disgust.

Barbara Hershey's scary facelifts finally used to advantage.