This Is Not a Dance Movie
Yes, Black Swan
is set on a ballet background. Yes, the plot revolves around the upcoming season of the NYC ballet. But dance is not the central topic of this film. This Darren Aronofsky picture focuses on rivalry and the danger of pushing yourself too hard. Black Swan underscores the role of a challenging environment on mental issues. And what is more challenging than being the prima ballerina of a dance company with an international reputation? To say that the professional ballet world is cruel and that the dancers have a fearless sense of competition would be understating the truth. I find the accuracy of this universe to be brilliantly depicted by the writers. Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel) is casting the perfect soloist to dance both the white and the black swans for his new adaptation of Swan Lake. In Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) he finds the perfect white swan. Lily (Mila Kunis), a new dancer in the company, will help Nina's liberated personality emerge. The way the cinematography is handled is a sublime illustration of what's going on in Nina's mind. It isn't a black and white picture but black and white are the main colors on screen. A few touches of pale pink surrounds Nina when she is in an innocent frame of mind. But when her darkest side rises, the colors get more brutal and intense. I really think the colors of this movie are important to the storyline and act as actual characters. Natalie Portman has been an excellent actress since she started at the age of 12. Black Swan confirms it again and allows her to win the Best Actress Academy Award for this demanding role. She plays the two opposite ends of the emotional spectrum with a dexterity that leaves me stunned. Mila Kunis, her counterpart, is a sexy badass ballerina who seduces Nina's hidden evil side and helps it take over her childlike innocence. The fall of the former star of the company (Winona Ryder) and the complex and disturbing relationship between Nina and her mother (Barbara Hershey) are main pieces of this psychological thriller puzzle. Black Swan is a bundle of amazing techniques covering all of the aspects of filmmaking.
is set on a ballet background. Yes, the plot revolves around the upcoming season of the NYC ballet. But dance is not the central topic of this film. This Darren Aronofsky picture focuses on rivalry and the danger of pushing yourself too hard. Black Swan underscores the role of a challenging environment on mental issues. And what is more challenging than being the prima ballerina of a dance company with an international reputation? To say that the professional ballet world is cruel and that the dancers have a fearless sense of competition would be understating the truth. I find the accuracy of this universe to be brilliantly depicted by the writers. Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel) is casting the perfect soloist to dance both the white and the black swans for his new adaptation of Swan Lake. In Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman) he finds the perfect white swan. Lily (Mila Kunis), a new dancer in the company, will help Nina's liberated personality emerge. The way the cinematography is handled is a sublime illustration of what's going on in Nina's mind. It isn't a black and white picture but black and white are the main colors on screen. A few touches of pale pink surrounds Nina when she is in an innocent frame of mind. But when her darkest side rises, the colors get more brutal and intense. I really think the colors of this movie are important to the storyline and act as actual characters. Natalie Portman has been an excellent actress since she started at the age of 12. Black Swan confirms it again and allows her to win the Best Actress Academy Award for this demanding role. She plays the two opposite ends of the emotional spectrum with a dexterity that leaves me stunned. Mila Kunis, her counterpart, is a sexy badass ballerina who seduces Nina's hidden evil side and helps it take over her childlike innocence. The fall of the former star of the company (Winona Ryder) and the complex and disturbing relationship between Nina and her mother (Barbara Hershey) are main pieces of this psychological thriller puzzle. Black Swan is a bundle of amazing techniques covering all of the aspects of filmmaking.
back when no 
or 
were released. I was going on a Lawrence marathon (yeah, that's a thing. A biathlon to be exact. It consists of eating bacon and watching Jennifer Lawrence act for 26 hours). When I saw the genius adaptation of 
, my jaw dropped. It dropped because of Debra Granik's direction and vision in portraying rural America. And because of John Hawkes in a tough supporting role. It dropped because of Lawrence's talent as a young untrained actor. Winter's Bone is the story of 17-year-old Ree Dolly who raises her 2 younger siblings and supports her mentally-ill mother in the middle of the Ozarks. The father is a well-known local meth cooker that no one has seen recently. So basically, she has a crappy life but wait! It gets worse. The sheriff shows up and tells her that her dad put up their house as part of his bond. They'll lose it if he doesn't show up for court. She has a week to find her missing dad. I find Winter's Bone mesmerizing with truth. Maybe it's because the set of this independent movie is made of what the crew found there. The houses, the wild, none of this was created by a Hollywood studio. Maybe the locals acting in the movie made it authentic. Maybe the lower-class misery to a background of drug addiction and the family relationships going to hell speaks to me. Yes, you can find it slow sometimes. But guess what! This is real life. I personally enjoy a director who gives time to... Well, time. Time for the plot to flow and make sense. Granik succeeds here in taking time for the story to happen without ever being boring. Lawrence's performance blows my mind. What I see on screen is a person with hardness anchored to her guts. Imagine being Academy-Award nominated for Best Actress before your twenties hand in hand with Natalie Portman or Annette Bening? The local music sets up the atmosphere for you. It could have been too much to have a 
on a movie taking place in the Ozarks but it really is just what it needed. You can even see the