Black Swan: have you seen it?

In an interview, Natalie Portman was explaining to a journalist the challenge of getting guys along to see ‘a ballet film’. “How do you do it? You put in a lesbian scene!” How right she was. I used that exact bait to lure my husband along to see Black Swan last weekend. Amazing how the words “Natalie Portman Lesbian Scene” can cause a grown man to overlook a lot of tulle.

At one point, during a graphic non-lesbian scene when Natalie Portman’s character goes to the hospital room of a former prima ballerina (Winona Ryder) to, um, return her metal nail file (!!!!!!), I leaned over and whispered “It’s a BALLET MOVIE”.

In the film, Natalie Portman portrays a timid ballerina fighting to play the lead in a New York Ballet Company’s production of Swan Lake, Mila Kunis’s character embodies everything that Portman’s is afraid of. She’s wild and free. What plays out is a twisted tale of competition, illusion, anxiety and mental illness. Barbara Hershey, remember her from Beaches? Is also stunning as Portman’s overbearing mother.

Like many who have seen it, Black Swan stayed with me. Many have said they came out of this film not knowing what they thought. I didn’t think it was a scary film. I thought Natalie Portman was amazing. Barbara Hershey too. I love Mila Kunis.  It’s the kind of movie that stays with you long after you leave the cinema. Scratch my back anyone?

What did you think of the film?

Here, Natalie Portman kind of explains which parts of her characters illusions were real and fake (2:35min mark):

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Here, behind the scenes with the costume and make-up teams:

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Here’s a gallery of Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis: