Review of Black Swan (2010) by Madalfred — 19 Dec 2010
Natalie Portman does for Black Swan what Mickey Rourke did for The Wrestler. Both players pushed themselves physically and emotionally to lend gravitas to an art form that isn't widely respected or understood.
She brings such life to her roll. She embodies anxiety, fear, excitement, frustration, and sexual confusion. Every other character in the film represents some external source of emotion. None of the supporting players gets three dimensions.
Each fills a role: "the mother," "the director," "the rival," "the former star." To that end, each of those characters inspires a different sort of anxiety, curiosity, dread, or fury in the central character, and Natalie Portman brilliantly evokes the oftentimes subtle distinctions between those emotional responses.
It's fascinating to watch.
This review of Black Swan (2010) was written by Madalfred on 19 Dec 2010.
Black Swan has generally received very positive reviews.
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