CHICAGO – Patrick McDonald of HollywoodChicago.com audio review for the streaming series “Emily in Paris” the adventures of Emily Cooper and her fanciful/fashionable Paris friends and lovers, now in its fourth season. Episodes 1-5 currently on Netflix.
Film Review: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Darren Aronofsky Stage Mesmerizing ‘Black Swan’
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CHICAGO – Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan” pulses with the kind of energy and life that we only see from cinema a few times a year. With creative expression rarely seen in American film and one of the best performances by an actress that you will ever see, “Black Swan” is a film that resonates for hours and even days after you see it. You won’t easily shake this masterpiece. And you won’t want to.
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There are films that twist and turn toward a specific interpretation. Films like “Fight Club” or “The Sixth Sense” rely on a twist that is designed to change the way you view what you just saw while films like “Inception” work to constantly keep the viewer asking questions about exactly “what is going on.” It may be tempting to approach “Black Swan” in the same way – trying to figure out exactly what’s real and what’s imagined; trying to “interpret” the film.
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And yet not all art needs to be explained. There’s a moment in “Black Swan” where a teacher looks at a student and instructs her that all that stands in front of her is herself and that she needs to let herself go. It could very well be a stand-in for Aronofsky and the viewer: the director telling you to simply take this ride. Don’t look at it as a mystery to be solved. We appreciate forms of art in which we’re more accustomed to unexplainable events like ballet, opera, or even dance without question – merely taking in the emotion and riding on the feelings. Aronofsky and writers Mark Heyman and Andres Heinz and John McLaughlin are trying to do much the same thing. Don’t interpret the dream literally. Just marvel at what it makes you feel.
In a career-best performance that also stands as the best of the year in any category, Natalie Portman stars as a ballet dancer named Nina Sayers. She’s a fragile soul who lives with her mother (Barbara Hershey) and has clearly devoted much of her body and soul to her craft. Nina works for a company headed by the intense Thomas (Vincent Cassel), who announces that he will be staging a deconstruction of the legendary “Swan Lake.” His longtime lead dancer Beth (Winona Ryder) will not be taking the role of The Swan Queen, leaving it open for Nina to prove that she’s worth the part. Meanwhile, a newcomer named Lily (Mila Kunis) threatens Nina’s possible stardom while also challenging her to find the “Black Swan” within.
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Black Swan
Photo credit: Fox Searchlight