Black Swan – Review of Darren Aronofsky’s new film

Director: Darren Aronofsky
Starring: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder, Barbara Hershey

This review by Alan Simmons.
On Friday night I was lucky enough to attend the UK premiere of the new film from director Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan, at the London Film Festival. I may not have got to interview any stars and the red carpet may have been shorter than the one in my Nan’s hallway, but I also witnessed possibly the best film of the year.

Natalie Portman plays Nina a dedicated, yet mentally fragile, ballerina who dreams of playing the Swan Queen in Thomas Leroy’s (Vincent Cassel) new production of Swan Lake. She is staggered yet elated, when she makes the cut, but it’s a part of two halves. Though she has the grace and perfection of the White Swan half of her performance nailed down, does she have what it takes to let go and perform as the darker, steamier alter ego: the Black Swan?

The pressure takes a terrible toll on Nina and the delicate dancer begins to fall apart: literally and metaphorically, physically and mentally. As her state of mind deteriorates both Nina, and us, must try and figure out what is real and what is a construct of her deteriorating psyche.

Portman gives the performance of her life in the role, battling an obsessed mother, an usurped prima ballerina (Winona Ryder), a dance director pushing her to the edge of her ability, a fellow dancer that may be trying to stitch her out of her part (Mila Kunis) and most importantly of all: her own confidence and sense of self. Aronofsky mentioned Kunis winning an award for her part at the Venice Film Festival, but I think it’s Portman who is bound to be buried beneath an avalanche of trophies and plaudits.

Aronofsky has crafted a beautiful, dazzling and mesmerising psychological thriller. Surprisingly terrifying at times, in Black Swan, he utilises scare tactics that had me jumping higher out of my seat than Paranormal Activity 2 and wince-worthy, Cronenberg-ian body horror that had me peeking out from between my fingers. In the Q and A afterward Aronofsky joked that these were “just cheap tricks” that he thought it would be fun to use: heaven help all our hearts if he ever decides to make a full-on entry to the horror genre!

It doesn’t matter whether or not you like ballet, this is a film you must see if you love cinema. Five stars, ten out of ten, which ever way you cut it, this is amazing, jaw on the floor film making and my current pick for the best of the year.