As a director, not one of his films could be considered conventional. Be it a mentally disturbed mathematician, a group of heroin addicts or a man trying to save his spouse from death, he always takes fascinating topics and tackles them in exciting ways. Continuing in a recurring theme of unconventional artists in his films, Aronofsky's latest film, "Black Swan," is the story of a ballet dancer, Nina, who is cast as the Swan Queen in her troupe's latest production of "Swan Lake." The trick is, the Swan Queen is supposed to have two split personalities: a calculated, elegant one, and a dark, sensual, rugged one.
For the role, Nina struggles to find the darker side in her as a performer, but in this search she descends into madness, destruction, and in more ways than one, transformation. Here's some hyperbole for you: Natalie Portman's role in this film as Nina Sayers is one of the greatest screen performances I have ever seen. There is not a better female performance this year; there probably isn't a performance better this year. She's just that good.
Portman immerses herself completely in the (literal) shoes of a ballerina; she reportedly trained for about a year prior to filming and could pass for a professional, at least to my novice eye.
But it's not just the technical aspects that she nails. Her character, Nina, undergoes an emotional metamorphosis in this film from good to bad, pure to tainted, white swan to black swan. I'm unsure what's more impressive, the moral absolutes she exhibits at opposite ends of the movie or her haunting descent from one to the other. Either way, I cannot stress enough just how good she is in the role.
Mila Kunis, in her most dramatic role yet, plays Lilly, both a rival and friend to Nina. I'll just say she's vital to the film and leave it at that, as her character is full of surprises. With that said, Kunis aces it.
Winona Ryder and Barbara Hershey both bring a lot of intensity to their roles as Nina's jealous colleague and her overbearing mother, respectively, and Vincent Cassel is solid as her sleazy director.
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