O.K., sorry but I've got a negative take on "Black Swan". No spoilers.

[UTUSN]

Sorry because a couple of DUer reviews (was it Richardo? definitely the movie was The King's Speech) were delivered with good vibes and good nature.

Just gotta say that this movie had some of the creepy vibes of Looking for Mr Goodbar, and this statement includes a bit of that kind of dated feel, too.

I'm trying hard not to set loose spoilers, and don't think this is one, but some of the tensions and stresses in the backstage of ballet and expectations put upon women are upped here a horror notch, but the real life tensions/stresses/expectations of real ballet end up looking as more horrifying in their own terms instead of the "horror movie" terms of this movie. Those real life backstage references might have been expected, as well as the general reference to the actual Swan Lake story line.

This thing was difficult to make and I won't quibble if Natalie PORTMAN takes the Oscar, while I haven't seen any other contenders. But in the decades since I've seen Rosemary's Baby, I'll just say that in that movie the transformation of the lead character was more in relief and startling and the "horror" bits in simple actions like a phone call were more, um, horrifying.

I've got a long history with TCHAIKOVSKY's music, talking hours and hours that would add up to weeks or perhaps even months of life, and including just about all of his stuff, so that was part of the draw for me, and I won't quibble that it was appropriately kept as respected background. And I'm guessing that what might have been a sound system problem was probably a theatrical device. Fine.

But overall, it was mainly two hours of "ewww, ick" and bits of edging up into stomach turning/churning rather than gut wrenching Horror. Sort of more pathetic than tragic. Sorry.

[LynneSin]

1. I thought the movie was brilliant and Natalie was amazing

I've read a bit about the movie and found some interesting stuff. Darren Afronsky (the director) made this as a companion piece to his last movie, "The Wrestler". I found that intersting since Mickey Rourke's wrestler was a far cry from Natalie Portman's ballet dancer. But yet if you watch both movie you'll see how both became so engrossed into their professions that the profession overtook them to the point that they could not be identified without it.

[UTUSN]

2. Well, I think I got that, like where somebody says to the PORTMAN character,

"You haven't told me who you are." And she says, "A dancer." And he says, "No, your name..."

Really, I'm tempted to say more just to prove I "got" the movie, but don't want to do spoilers. Although, if what I say keeps somebody from seeing it the spoilers wouldn't matter, I guess.




But (not being snide), since you and I also see the comic strip "For Better or for Worse" from opposite sides, well...

[tigereye]

6. I thought the plot was pretty standard and has been done

much better by others.

The acting was excellent though, particularly Portman and the mother character.

[Ghost of Tom Joad]

3. I wanted to like this film but found it

very unsatisfying. The film seems to hate women. There was not a positive female character in the film. Also I had problems with the idea that a ballet dancer could come so far in her art form and break apart the way Nina did. Dancers need to made of steel to get anywhere. It would have been more interesting if her awakening sexuality was cause for becoming a great dancer. This film was in my opinion a mess.

[applegrove]

4. I've heard some of the spoilers of this film and feel I will have to skip it because it is just

too gross for me...even though I love dance.

[tigereye]

7. I don't think it was gross- it was intense emotionally

JMO

[siligut]

5. When they got it right, they got it very right.

They also showed psychotic paranoia the best I have seen. I would say Gaslight would be the standard, for me, in terms of showing what the mind goes through, but Black Swan took it to a new level. It was beautifully grotesque. I believe you when you say you saw it as horror. The sound effects used were often from the horror genre, not just the bloody stuff, the suspense stuff too.

[Kat45]

8. Interesting. I didn't want to see it because I got a creepy vibe from the commercial

From what you said, I guess my feeling was correct and I'm glad I chose to not see the movie.

[MilesColtrane]

9. Arnofsky has never exactly been Captain Sunshine.

I mean, "Pi" and "Requiem for a Dream"...