Perfect!!

Rating: Null/10 (26 December 2010)

Black Swan is a cinematic triumph, bringing a modern day twist to the well-loved Grimm's Fairy tale style of story telling. Darren Aronofsky, director (Requiem for A Dream, The Wrestler) will have you holding your breath as he takes you into the fascinatingly beautiful and complicated world of prima ballerina, Nina (Natalie Portman). Natalie Portman holds nothing back as she slowly reels you into her startling, repressed, emotionally charged inner world. Aronofsky has skillfully interwoven the very sensual world of the ballet with the passion of the individuals who inhabit it.
Beautifully designed, photographed and acted the movie is stylish and full of powerful images and intense emotions, my main criticism is that a movie like this needs to be centred around the lead character's relationship with the people around her, but her relationship was mainly to the character in the ballet. What was her fear about? Why was she so afraid of exposing her inner self? What demons lived there? You never find out.
"Black Swan" leaves audiences with all sorts of questions and debatable points, which can be cumbersome, but it really makes for a fascinating discussion. You'll probably be internally at war over questionable little bits and pieces of the film, but it's those little moments that really make the film what it is. The performances here by all the actors are mesmerizing, as is the art direction and the general storytelling itself— this is truly a fascinating, off-kilter piece of cinema, and a true 'black swan' among recent films. It may leave you scratching your head in regards to some of the material that is hinted at and thrown toward us without full explication; but ultimately it won't matter, because "it was perfect". 10/10.