Beware of Ballet

Rating: 6/10 (4 February 2011)

I will not be sending my daughter to ballet lessons anytime soon, that is for sure. Anyone watching this film as promotion of ballet will be shocked. I was in the cinema with a bunch of upcoming ballerinas. The lesbian scene had a mother and her daughter heading for the door. I do think the scene was excessive and un-artful and thus only there for sensationalism and controversy (an no serious film lover respects cheap tricks). Was It a good film depends on if we judge it by its period. Now after hunger for something to feed my desire for quality Hollywood cinema this film at least hits some marks. I struggled with "the American" (it tried and didn't hit the mark as it should have). A good comment was made which said "As for Portman, she will win the Oscar for "Black Swan," however, she should have won it for "Closer." it saves time to just quote the better reviewers. The other user says and I agree: Most of the film she played Nina as the Naive, frustrated woman the role required. However, where was the redemptive aggression of the Black Swan? That would have been an action challenge! It was reduced to a few scenes at the end. Wasn't that the whole point of the film? It felt like, "OK, we're almost out of money so let's wrap this up." And don't try to label the movie sophisticated or artsy. Please!!!! " No it isn't an art house film, it is a Hollywood film with an art house marketing dress.
Now I didn't like the DP work, I guess I expected stunning stable cinematography which was mirror the delicate world of ballet. I didn't expect gritty and shaky. Without that expectation maybe it would have worked.
Now here is the main flaw. As stated above there was a failure to make the case for the Black Swan dual personality. It seemed to show up at the end in a rush. It is subjective but I think there was a failure on the part of the director. I honestly think someone else could have done a much better job with the screenplay. Something is missing in his tool box. I saw the same missing element in Requiem. (a good concept with poor application making it unpleasant to watch as a film, or maybe it was just very bad editing)or maybe it was suppose to be a music video.
It is not fair to say but I found Ms Portmans weight distracting (personal opinion) she was so skinny it drew my focus. Her voice has never been a winner, you just don't associate those kind of voices with A-rate actors. Rese being another one along with Melanie Griffith . I think the only Funny voice actress who holds it down and is taken serious is Holly Hunter.
The real reason I enjoyed it is because the world of modern cinema is so predictable and boring that this film gives a little joy. So not a perfect execution but a good attempt. I would buy the DVD as it is a valid contribution for any collection. And you will not have to put it in backwards to hide the title from your friends out of shame.