Probably THE greatest film I have ever seen

Rating: 10/10 (20 March 2011)

I was scared that I might've been getting a little too hyped up for this and my expectations would be set too high and I'd end up being disappointed with it, feeling like it was over rated rubbish. But, "Black Swan" didn't just meet my high expectations, but exceeded them.
I don't know where to begin with this absolute masterpiece (or marsterpiece as my art teacher would say) it is simply extraordinary. Let's start with the obvious. The performances. Natalie Portman deserves every single award she's nominated for. Not only did she dance like a professional but she managed to still emphasise with her character whilst still remembering her moves. That requires some serious skill! Portman should get that Oscar! Barbara Hershey was equally as mind blowing as the over protected, slightly (well, maybe a little more than slightly) loopy mother. Barbara was terrifying! She was like Carrie's mum (in the scary sense, not in the disturbing religious sense) and I hope she wins something as well. The womanising teacher was great, as was the rival ballet woman. Every performance (like in "The King's Speech) was fantastic! "Black Swan" is a marsterclarse in directing (that's masterclass) right from the editing to the camera shots it was perfect. The final scene was shot so intensely that my pulse was racing, but we'll get to that in a minute. I've never seen a Darren Arfronskey film before but by gum I will do now! Every scare counts and is effective. Nina's slow decomposition into hell is perfectly paced.
The screenplay is solid and captivating. Letting us experience every bit of horror are mentally unstable person can experience. I can't remember actually watching a film before and just being sucked into the world of the film. It felt like I was actually there and when it was over I felt so disorientated and dizzy (no it's not because I'm middle aged) I was just absolutely astounded by what i just witnessed. The film can be so well analysed, it is so clever it's unbelievable. Kids should be analysing this at school! Not "Death Of A Salesman" Why do people keep commenting on "there's too much ballet"? Yeah there is but it's completely purposeful to the film! They didn't just think "Oh, let's bung some ballet there for the intellectual's" it's meaningful and I actually enjoyed it! (and I'm not gay!) The last half hour or so was bloody intense! It was like all she had been waiting for was building up and suddenly released it was beautiful, stunning! No words can describe the ending! It is just heart pounding. I was left speechless, the first words that came out of my mouth were "Oh my god!" Yeah, it's literally mind blowing.
I could write an essay on how incredible "Black Swan" is but it still wouldn't justify it. It is possibly the greatest film I've ever seen. At the end of the film Nina says "It was perfect" and I couldn't agree more.