"Black Swan" is Intense, A Masterpiece

It is once in a very long while that there comes a movie which leaves the viewers jaw-dropped and shocked. And when two of such movies come from the same filmmaker, you definitely know that you are looking at the Picasso of film-making, with each of his masterpieces worth collecting, and watching over and over again for their sheer perfection. Darren Aronofsky is the man I am referring to, and I consider myself privileged to have watched his masterpieces. “Requiem For A Dream” was a masterpiece, but Aronofsky further raises the bar with his amazing psychological thriller “Black Swan”.

When Heath Ledger died due to drug overdose immediately after his legendary performance as Joker in “The Dark Knight”, there was news that Heath sank psychologically too deep into his role as the psychopath, and this was speculated as a possible reason for his death. There have been many other such instances when actors have sunk completely into their roles, to such an extent that they lose the distinction between themselves and the characters they portray. “Black Swan” tells the dark, gripping tale of one such artist, who loses herself to the character she performs. Natalie Portman plays a ballerina “Nina Sayers”, who becomes so obsessed with her upcoming performance, that her mind takes her to extremities of getting into the character, which sadly has devastating side-effects on who she actually is.

Darren Aronofsky puts you, the viewer, into the shoes of Nina, and shows you the world as she sees it. As the pressure builds upon her to let herself free and lose herself into becoming the “black” swan, everything around her begins to turn sour- be it her relationship with her mother, or her insecurities against her fellow ballerina “Lily” played by Mila Kunis. Everything around her begins to turn dark and tragic, but what of it is reality and what is imagination- that is something you must watch and find out. Just like in “Requiem For A Dream”, Darren Aronofsky chooses a simple linear narrative, and creates a magical aura and tone in every scene, blurring away the line between reality and imagination. The innovative cinematography, intense background score and the fast-moving screenplay-he uses all of these ingredients perfectly to keep you on the edge of your seat for 108 minutes, involved and amazed! The movie is dark, both in its screenplay and its tone. It has a lot of scary moments, that are bound to make you jump in your seats, or bite you nails in fear. The ballet performances are beautifully choreographed, and even more beautifully shot. But the best moment of the movie is the last few minutes of the movie, where everything coincides and begins to make complete sense, leaving the viewers jaw-dropped and disturbed!

What allows “Black Swan” to be so perfect is its excellence in each of its aspects. The cinematography is something you have never seen like before. The script is very well-thought, clear and characters are realistic. The intense background score acts like a backbone to the mood of every single scene. And of course, the execution of it all together, is flawless. Natalie Portman is the center of attention throughout the movie, which is very well-deserved. She has played her part with great sincerity, and it is evident how hard she has worked towards this performance. Her emotions, expressions, and reactions hold the movie together, and you feel assured that the Oscar did go to a deserving person.

All in all, “Black Swan” is not just a must-watch, but worth collecting as well. It is the kind of movie that completely justifies calling film-making an art, and raises the bar for future film-making.