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Storyline
Nina is a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life, like all those in her profession, is completely consumed with dance. She lives with her obsessive former ballerina mother Erica who exerts a suffocating control over her. When artistic director Thomas Leroy decides to replace prima ballerina Beth MacIntyre for the opening production of their new season, Swan Lake, Nina is his first choice. But Nina has competition: a new dancer, Lily, who impresses Leroy as well. Swan Lake requires a dancer who can play both the White Swan with innocence and grace, and the Black Swan, who represents guile and sensuality. Nina fits the White Swan role perfectly but Lily is the personification of the Black Swan. As the two young dancers expand their rivalry into a twisted friendship, Nina begins to get more in touch with her dark side - a recklessness that threatens to destroy her. |
Backdrops
The Director
 Darren Aronofsky
Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American film director, screenwriter and film producer. He attended Harvard University and AFI to study both live-action and animation. He won several film awards after completing his senior thesis film, "Supermarket Sweep", which went on to become a National Student Academy Award finalist.
Aronofsky feature debut, π, was shot in November 1997. The low-budget, $60,000 production, starring Sean Gullette, was sold to Artisan Entertainment for $1 million, and grossed over $3 million; Aronofsky won the Directing Award at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival and an Independent Spirit Award for best first screenplay. Aronofsky's followup, Requiem for a Dream, was based on the novel of the same name written by Hubert Selby, Jr. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Ellen Burstyn's performance. After turning down an opportunity to direct Batma n Begins, Aronofsky began production on his third film, The Fountain.
With his fourth film, The Wrestler, both of the film's stars, Mickey Rourke and Marisa Tomei, received Academy Award nominations. Rourke also won a Golden Globe for Best Actor and Bruce Springsteen won for Best Original Song for his title song. Aronofsky's latest film, Black Swan, received further critical acclaim and many accolades, being nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director, four Golden Globes including Best Motion Picture – Drama and Best Director, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, a record 12 BFCA nominations and a DGA nomination.
Description above from the Wikipedia article Darren Aronofsky, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
News Stories
DVD Pick of the Week: Black Swan
We've got your Clevver Movies DVD Pick of the Week -- stay tuned!
Hey there movie lovers, we've got a DVD pick of the Week for you right here on Clevver Movies. In case you guys are looking to catch a flick but don't wanna head to the theater, this week's DVD pick is Black Sw...
Black Swan Music Video Trailer
Black Swan hits theaters on December 1st, 2010.
Cast: Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder, Sebastian Stan, Barbara Hershey, Kristina Anapau
"Black Swan" follows the story of Nina (Portman), a ballerina in a New York City ballet company whose life, like ...
Natalie Portman In Black Swan New Pic
Natalie Portman gets close to her co-star. We have the details up next.
Welcome back to Clevver Movies. I'm your host, Amanda Janner.
Following Black Swan's premiere at the Venice International Film Festival on September 1st, a new photo from the film has been released. T...
Top Movie Inspired Halloween Costumes: Celebrities
Now Halloween is over, but we just cant let go of one of the most fun holidays of the year! So we decided to count down the BEST movie inspired costumes from your favorite celebs!
Kim Kardashian comes in 4th as Poison Ivy...and she looks hot!
Speaking of hot, Carmen Electr...
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Oscar Flashback: Black Swan (2010)
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Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert!A film I viewed at the cinemas before the Oscars (thank you very much) is Black Swan, which was nominated for Best Picture; for which Natalie Portman won the Best Actress Oscar; and for which Darren Aronofsky was nominated for the Best Director Oscar; Matthew Libatique was nominated for the Best Cinematography Oscar; and Andrew Weisblum was nominated for the Best Film Editing Oscar (film year, 2010; awarding year, 2011). The other nominees in these categories were:
Best Picture
The King's Speech (Winner) *
127 Hours
The Fighter
Inception *
The Kids Are All Right
The Social Network
Toy Story 3 *
True Grit
Winter's Bone
Best Actress
The Kids Are All Right - Annette Bening
Rabbit Hole - Nicole Kidman
Winter's Bone - Jennifer Lawrence
Blue Valentine - Michelle Williams
Best Director
The King's Speech - Tom Hooper (Winner)
True Grit - Ethan Coen and Joel Coen
The Social Network - David Fincher
The Fighter - David O'Russell
Best Cinematography
Inception (Winner) *
The King's Speech *
The Social Network
True Grit
Best Film Editing
The Social Network (Winner) *
127 Hours
The Fighter
The King's Speech *
Of all of the potential Oscar contenders flooding the cinemas during the holiday/end of year glut (catching up, still), the selection I most looked forward to viewing was Black Swan. Darren Aronofsky is a fascinating director, and even if I don't love all of his films, I still find myself in awe of his unique creative visions, which are so visually and structurally cohesive in each of his films, regardless of the premises of each, which often explore the extremes of any given subject. I've seen Pi, Requiem for a Dream, ...
View full review
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reviewed by Pippin2010 (Filmaster.com) on the 4th of April 2011
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Portman's performance carries this film, fleshing out her character's fragility without dulling her edge. Aronofsky executes the film's relatively bland script with gusto, wringing emotional turmoil from Portman with the admirable support of Cassel, Kunis, and Hershey. Rather than fall prey to the emptiness of the script the film constricts its focus, delivering a taut thriller with beautiful imagery and a tragic disposition.