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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Aronofsky's BLACK SWAN

I gotta say, I'm with Richard on this one. I was already an admirer of Darren's work, but came away with a greater respect after seeing Black Swan. I thought it was one of his finer crafted films and really showed what he is capable of pulling off. I absolutely loved all the visual motifs of this fever dream, and together with the rhythms of the actors motions, the camera's dynamic movement and the wonderful orchestration, it was a very engaging. And I never felt myself taken out from the film, where I could reflect upon whether it was being too predictable, or that the performance were telegraphed. It was a very artistic film, very sensory, the kind that I really enjoy and appreciate. I personally gained a new respect for him.
 
Black Swan is one of the most brilliant, haunting and horrifyingly beautiful films I have ever seen. It's one of those rare films that comments on the human condition and reminds us that film is, in its purest form, a visual language. It speaks to you if you are able to listen. It's not just a movie to watch, it's a work of art to behold. This is my new favorite film. I cannot wait to see it again!
 
Excellent adaptation film, Portman was amazing though I think she was directed perfectly which brought out the perfect performance, Milas Kunas is the sleeper star of the film, and the Tree of Life trailer was cool too. I thought the VFX were solid and extremely effective (less is more). I was disappointed with the 7D footage, very jello cam and unnecessary in my opinion. A simple shoulder mount or third point of contact would have produced better results IMHO and the skin tones had that weird float despite an excellent color grade to match it to the 16mm.
I'm sure the theater I watched this in was projecting 1080p, would like to see it again on a 2K projection. Can anyone recommend a 2K theater to see this in NYC?
 
I really enjoyed this film.

I liked that he brought a similar style of grit to this "ballet" story as he did the wrestler. Portman is fantastic, that small voice she uses in the early scenes is a wonderful example of the complexity in her work.

She is one very talented actor.

The film is a stunning must watch. Real craft and an indy attention to detail.

David
 
Carey Lee Coffey said:
Black Swan is one of the most brilliant, haunting and horrifyingly beautiful films I have ever seen. It's one of those rare films that comments on the human condition and reminds us that film is, in its purest form, a visual language. It speaks to you if you are able to listen. It's not just a movie to watch, it's a work of art to behold. This is my new favorite film. I cannot wait to see it again!
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I couldn't have said it better myself. I was finishing up film school when Pi came out. It immediately spoke to me as it so brilliantly captured what I was laboring so hard on paper to try to achieve. He became someone to watch.

Seeing Requiem was akin to a religious experience, something I've only had maybe 3 times when watching a movie. At that point, with Kubrick having passed on, he became my favorite living director.

What I loved most about his work to that point was that he, better than anyone since Scorsese's best work, used the artifice of filmmaking to capture the rawest components of the human condition. I believe that tone is the hidden element that makes or breaks a film when all (or most) of the other aspects are decent. With those two films he displayed himself as a master of tone. Furthermore he was truly an auteur. His tone was uniquely his own.

I'm one of those who was disappointed with The Fountain. While The Wrestler was a very good film, IMO, it lacked that authorship that Aronofsky's first two films had. The kind of thing that made you say "only Aronofsky could have directed this."

With Black Swan, Aronofsky has gone back to crafting a film that could have only come from him. The tone is perfect for the subject. In some respects he is filming fear, obsession, and a handful of other uniquely human traits and emotions... and that's what I've always loved about his work.

(End rambling)
 
Just saw this. Whoa. Interesting flick. Tom, I agree with you, 'The Fountain' is still his best work, and I really miss THAT Aronofsky, where'd he go? Best performance of Portman ever, and now I actually think Mila Kunis can act! Who knew?

On a tech level, I found the grain distracting as hell. If I turned out footage that grainy, I'd be embarrassed. Then I look at the tech specs and see it was all 16mm, makes sense. Though I didnt know 16 was THAT grainy.
 
Shawn Nelson said:
Just saw this. Whoa. Interesting flick. Tom, I agree with you, 'The Fountain' is still his best work, and I really miss THAT Aronofsky, where'd he go?
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Well, I think he's been recuperating from the lame beatdown he took on THE FOUNTAIN, and doing a superb job of it. Now it's time to move on to big ideas.
 
Tom Lowe said:
Well, I think he's been recuperating from the lame beatdown he took on THE FOUNTAIN, and doing a superb job of it. Now it's time to move on to big ideas.
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The negative review of 'The Fountain' really upset me, to me that is one of most brilliant movies I've ever seen. I've seen it many times, it holds up again and again.
 
Without question, Shawn. A huge masterpiece. I marvel at that film.
 
Tom Lowe said:
Without question, Shawn. A huge masterpiece. I marvel at that film.
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Funny thing is after seeing the trailer for 'Tree of Life', I think Malick took inspiration as well! Well that and Baraka.

I hope that now that Darren got 'The Wrestler' and 'Black Swan' out of his system, he'll go back to the sheer precision, emotional journey and ambition of 'The Fountain'.
 
Hehe. Like I told you, Malick wrote TREE like 30 years ago. He's been researching and planning it all this time.

I agree with you about Aronofsky. Time to get back to the big stuff.
 
Tom Lowe said:
Hehe. Like I told you, Malick wrote TREE like 30 years ago. He's been researching and planning it all this time.

I agree with you about Aronofsky. Time to get back to the big stuff.
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Im not talking about the writing, obviously the plot is way different, but the visuals are VERY reminiscent of 'The Fountain' meets 'Baraka' (well all the non 50s stuff)
 
Have you seen Malick's treatment for this film from the 1970s? The shots are described word for word. Malick did not need Aronofsky to get visual clues for a masterpiece like TREE! It's been in his mind for decades.
 
Eh? :-)
 

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Gavin Greenwalt said:
If anything that first shot is riffing on Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris
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Also Tarkovsky's "Ivan's childhood" and of course "Mirror".

Everybody should get those movies at Tarkovsky's DVD collection...
 
I agree that Black Swan is a ‘small’ or ‘personal’ film, however you want to call it but it defiantly communicates to its audience. Watching Black Swan is an experience and that’s about as higher compliment you can give a film. Aronofsky may choose to explore broader on bigger ideas but it in no way will make Black Swan a lesser work.
 
I went to a sbeak premiere (in Denmark) two days ago and found the film really impressive. As for the scenes shot on 7D I knew what to look for, and when they came up I absolutely couldn't tell they were shot on a DSLR. What seperated them so drasticly from the 16mm film stock?
 
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