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An unexciting attempt at psychologically sophisticated art. Slightly irritating in places, unconventional thanks the interesting ballet setting, but an attempt nevertheless. Someone should tell Aronofsky that he is not the Kubrick of the 21st century. I admire the difficulty of ballet as an art, as well as Tchaikovsky's magical music, but this film is so empty and uses so many horror tropes that it's maddening. Hype of the year. PS: If it wasn't for Natalie Portman, who put so much effort into her role, I'd go even lower with the rating. (25.12.2010)

Natalie turning bitchy. Black Swan is beautifully cruel. Not only to the protagonist, who is fragile in an Audrey Hepburn kind of way, but also to the viewer. It doesn’t give us any indication of what is a dream and what is reality. We figure that out only in retrospect. Though Aronofsky doles out information with the greatest care and only additionally justifies the presence of seemingly insignificant situations, he still leaves enough room for the imagination, which makes it possible to comprehend Black Swan on the physical, psychological and metaphysical levels. Symbolic value can be assigned to each of the few visually distinctive settings. The “warm” home with a prevalence of pink as the past, from which Nina wants to escape, the hospital (with Beth) as the future to which she is headed, and the cold grey theatre as the space where the protagonist must deal with her struggle between what she was and what she would like to be. As depicted in the film, ballet is as painful and destructive as wrestling is in The Wrestler, but Aronofsky still succeeded in capturing its ethereal grace, which is admirable, given the raw, almost documentary-style realism using  “pursuing” camerawork. Of course, such competition is prevalent not only in the behind-the-scenes world of ballet, as the cult of beauty and focus on the surface (which is [un]reliably reflected here by the ever-present mirrors) are an everyday challenge. Do you want to succeed? Be a whore. Portman hands in a supreme physical performance, but her eyes tell us more about her crucial transformation than her gestures and words do. Her almost frightening determination is preceded by innocence and timidity. When she finally comes into her own, I said together with her, “It was perfect.” Almost. I’m not entirely sure if Black Swan is a great film pretending to be a B-movie erotic (or, better said, “physical”) thriller, or just a thriller, but given the fact that it thematises the wearing of artistic masks and the indistinguishability of what’s true from what’s false, it’s a winner in either case. 90% (16.02.2011)

Black Swan is, in essence, a mirror to Wrestler. Swap out Natalie Portman for Mickey Rourke, change the setting from ballet to wrestling, and at its core, you’d see a very similar film. Of course, the moral themes are different, the life stories vary, and the personality of each character is distinct, but both movies explore the same intense, all-consuming pursuit of perfection. After watching Black Swan, you might find yourself reflecting on it in the same way you did after Wrestler, especially with Rourke’s unforgettable performance that somehow didn’t win him an Oscar. Now, we'll see if Natalie Portman, delivering one of the best performances of her career since Leon, can take home the award she absolutely deserves. Her portrayal of Nina is a rare, career-defining role. The only downside for me is that Black Swan takes a while to build momentum. But once it does, I was pulled deeper into the story until the final scene, which left my heart racing even after the credits rolled. Darren Aronofsky directed this in the way only he can, with Clint Mansell composing yet another stunning score that perfectly captures the emotional depth of the film. This is yet another exploration of human nature—this time, the relentless pursuit of perfection. (27.01.2011)

After the solid but not entirely satisfactory Wrestler, Aronofsky consolidates his position among my most favourite directors. The first hour of Black Swan is pretty similar to Wrestler – we follow very closely (almost intimately) one person at a turning point of their lives, we feel their emotions and every one of their injuries. This is not always very pleasant, Aronofsky knows how to transmit pain from the screen to the viewer like few others. This “introduction” would already be enough for four stars, but the last half hour shattered, disarmed and decimated me; utterly so. I felt a constant chill on my back and I shivered like an aspen tree; my eyes an ears were unable to perceive anything but the film. No other film this year has made me feel like this. 100 % (22.12.2010)

You can stone me, but Aronofsky is repeating himself for the third time and it's getting old. Although he once again emphasizes the physicality and the decay of the soul and body, the film lacks any sort of more prominent moment that I haven't seen from him before. The lacerated fingers do hurt, but what I saw here was more so pseudo-art, where he gracefully tiptoes around but doesn't get to the core even once. The metamorphoses at the end amused me unintentionally rather than making me feel any kind of gradation or even catharsis. However, I can understand the standing ovation the film receives. (26.12.2010)