Film Review: Black Swan

I've decided to step away from my usual wordy style for this review of Black Swan.  Instead, I'm going to break it down into bite-sized morsels for you, the person deciding whether or not to see Black Swan.

What's it about?

A ballet dancer with a monster stage mom finally gets her big chance to dance the lead in her company's production of Swan Lake.  She struggles to cope with the nuances the role requires and with the rising star of a rival dancer.  Sometimes, she hallucinates. 

Should I see it?

Do you like any of the following: Darren Aronofsky, stalking Natalie Portman, or Mulholland Drive? 
Then, yes, definitely. 
Are you a fan of dark indie movies?  Do you like being in the know about the various movies that will be nominated come awards "season"?  
Yes, probably. 
Are you just interested because you heard about that, ahem, specific scene between Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis?  
Maybe just check that part out on youtube or something. 
Are you at all squeamish? 
Emphatically, skip it!
Are you my parents?
How about a nice viewing of Tangled?

Anything else I should know?
 
- A fun game to play during the movie is deciding whether Natalie Portman is actually a good actress or if she is just playing the cuckoo bird version of what she normally plays.  Either way, you'll enjoy the performance if you've always thought she was talented or if you're usually annoyed by her.  I think she and Aronofsky are playing up her image to make everything that happens that much creepier.  Enjoy the somewhat tongue-in-cheek casting of the fading star she's replacing in the ballet.

- Hey, Mila Kunis is totally talented!  Who knew she was going to have a career after That 70s Show?  Speaking of, Topher Grace appears to have made a new movie, but it's set in the 80s.  Some day, that poor man will catch up to the present day.

- I'm not much of a ballet fan, so it's hard for me to say whether the actual dancing that occurs makes this worth it as a ballet movie.  I'm just going to assume this is exactly what happens every time a new ballet star gets her big break.

- Darren Aronofsky is an amazing director, but I did think this one occasionally crossed the line from disturbing to campy.  I'm a firm believer in the concept that never seeing the scary thing is much scarier than actually seeing it. 

- Seriously, this movie is very gross.  There are moments that will make you wince.  These moments will then play on repeat for you when you try to sleep.

- If you go into this movie expecting it to be weird, as I did, it will still turn out to be weirder than you were expecting. 

I still feel conflicted.  Are you glad you saw it?
Absolutely, yes.  It's riveting.  You might look away for those gross parts, but the movie will grab your attention from start to finish.