Excellent symbolism

Rating: 10/10 (10 October 2012)

WARNING: DO NOT READ UNLESS YOU WANT TO SPOIL A GREAT MOVIE.
The Black Swan is a very thought-provoking movie that shows the mental collapse of a young and stunning ballet ballerina; slowly transforming into her character in the play, Black Swan, requiring her to be a twisted, dangerous and sexual persona. The producers and the staff of this movie delivered an admirable and brilliant way to give the public an inside view into Nina's mind; therefore, giving a slowly and detailed build up until her final collapse. One of the very interesting and main techniques that they use is symbolism. Symbolism means a visual clue that foreshadows what is coming up, and has a double meaning to it, to really transmit the overall subject of a piece of literature. In this case, they want to portray the transcendence of a shy and fragile woman into an immoral and manipulative person, which eventually forces her to lose herself and attaining death. "Perfection is not just about control. It is also about letting go. Surprise yourself so you can surprise the audience. Transcendence. Very few have it in them." Some of these symbols are, for example, the mirrors we see Nina looking at herself and seeing someone else in her body. The purpose of this method is a repeating reminder of Nina's other 'reality'. They portray an image of Nina that seems to have "life of her own". Over the movie, they slowly take over Nina's self and turns her into an evil character. Lily shows the evil side of the entertainment industry, coping with a world that is able to drag people into misery by consuming their own person. In one scene, as Lily starts touching and feeling Nina, one can see the black tattooed wings on her back. In other words, showing how her role in the play makes an impact on Nina's insanity. This part shows how this sexual act penetrates Nina, giving her orgasm, but also taking her life away. One of the most remarkable scene is when Nina is about to get on the stage to perform her so wanted role in the play, she finds attacking her reflection in the mirror, and making it shatter all over her, and showing her full transformation into the Black Swan. This scene represents the final collapse of her mental stability, and the devastating take of her old self. There are many other symbols throughout the movie that shows the insanity of the character. This is truly a masterpiece that delivers a fascinating whole new outlook into the dark side of entertainment.