When I sat down to watch Black Swan I really had no idea what to expect, and frankly wasn’t too enthused about a film about dancers. Yes, there’s lots of drama and politics in a dance troupe – after all that’s where “prima dona” comes from — but would the prospect of watching Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis compete for the lead in a performance really be entertaining?
One of the things I really enjoyed about Christopher Nolan’s recent Inception (another film in the running for Best Picture) was that what we saw on screen wasn’t always what was actually happening in the story. Much better than voiceover narrative, seeing the delusions, fears, daydreams and hallucinations of characters can be far more powerful, and in Black Swan, there are frequent scenes where the viewer is left asking whether it really transpired or was symptomatic of Nina’s gradual loss of her grip on reality.

Wow, that film knocked my socks off. Powerful. Thanks for the review!
Excellent review. I’ll have to see this one.
ughh; everyone keeps saying great things about this movie — so I guess I’m going to have to see it!
Nice review 🙂
There is a fine line between passion and obsession, and Black Swan shows us what can happen when someone crosses that line. Great analysis of the film. I agree 100%: “Black Swan is a breathtaking, intense, horrifying and beautiful cinematic essay on obsession.” I wrote a short post on the film called “Obsession with Perfection” If you would like to read it, here is the link: https://christopherjohnlindsay.wordpress.com/2015/05/08/black-swan/