Echos of Polanski's Repulsion

Rating: Null/10 (6 August 2011)

In the mid 60's I saw Roman Polanski's memorable film Repulsion, starring Catherine Deneuve as a sexually repressed Belgian girl living with her worldly sister in London, who slowly went mad as she suffered sexual fantasies. Black Swan has the same theme, but the action takes place in the hothouse atmosphere of a ballet company. We have seen it all before, and better, in The Red Shoes and Turning Point: the rigorous training for a brief career - dancers are washed up by their mid 30's, the bleeding feet, the injuries, the bullying artistic directors who demand total subjection to their art.
If watching ballet is your thing, Black Swan is a disappointment as it mostly takes place in the rehearsal rooms. If thrillers are more to your taste, I can think of many far better. Overall, despite some very good performances, particularly Vincent Cassell, Barbara Hershey, and Mila Kunis, I found the film boring.