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Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder, Barbara Hershey ... see more see more... , Benjamin Millepied , Ksenia Solo , Kristina Anapau , Janet Montgomery , Sebastian Stan , Toby Hemingway , Sergio Torrado , Mark Margolis , Tina Sloan , Abe Aronofsky , Charlotte Aronofsky , Marcia Jean Kurtz , Shaun P. O'Hagan , Christopher Gartin , Deborah Offner , Stanley Herman , Michelle Rodriguez Nouel , Kurt Froman , Marty Krzywonos , Leslie Lyles , John Epperson , Arkadiy Figlin , Timothy Fain , Sarah Lane , Liam Flaherty , Patrick Heusinger , Animated

A psychological thriller set in the world of New York City ballet, BLACK SWAN stars Natalie Portman as Nina, a featured dancer who finds herself locked in a web of competitive intrigue with a new riva... read more read more...l at the company (Mila Kunis). A Fox Searchlight Pictures release by visionary director Darren Aronofsky (THE WRESTLER), BLACK SWAN takes a thrilling and at times terrifying journey through the psyche of a young ballerina whose starring role as the duplicitous swan queen turns out to be a part for which she becomes frighteningly perfect. BLACK SWAN follows the story of Nina (Portman), 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 retired ballerina mother Erica (Barbara Hershey) who zealously supports her daughter,s professional ambition. When artistic director Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel) decides to replace prima ballerina Beth MacIntyre (Winona Ryder) for the opening production of their new season, Swan Lake, Nina is his first choice. But Nina has competition: a new dancer, Lily (Kunis), 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 with a recklessness that threatens to destroy her. -- (C) Official Site

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86% liked it

116,116 ratings

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87% liked it

263 critics

R, 1 hr. 48 min.

Directed by: Darren Aronofsky

Release Date: December 3, 2010

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DVD Release Date: March 29, 2011

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Flixster Reviews (22,657)

  • aquateen2
    May 4, 2012
    aquateen2
    [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img]

    Since her spectacularly passionate performance in V for Vendetta I knew that Natalie Portman could take on the role of Nina and turn it into a remarkably dazzling spectacle. However she doesn't "act" as ... read morethe tortured soul in Black Swan, she moulds it into what it ultimately appears. The direction is cleverly executed and grips onto some incredible but very creepy set pieces that really did disturb me and crafted a dark atmosphere despite some moments that were too loud and out of control. The hugely melodramatic soundtrack and some gut churning moments intensified it and made me feel the lead character's pain and I was wincing often because it's a highly intense but strangely graceful movie. It's not a film for everyone but if your confident in thinking it's for you, it completely blows you away.
  • scottgreen96
    March 24, 2012
    scottgreen96
    Acting is used with precision, Natalie and Vincent are the perfect choices for the roles that they play, this film will win awards after awards.
  • fb1463751009
    March 9, 2012
    fb1463751009
    A riveting, shocking, and great movie. In the past, Natalie Portman grabbed some attention from her previous movies (V for Vendetta, Brothers) but her performance in Black Swan beyond anything she's ever done before. She is outstanding. The direction, cinematography, and editing ... read moreseems to be in the same style as Darren Arronofsky's previous movie, The Wrestler, but it definitely fits with the theme and the message of the movie. This movie is gritty and artful movie. Black Swan is one of the best of 2010 but a bit of a warning: It is definitely not for everyone and the movie is extremely graphic.
  • purplemegan
    March 4, 2012
    purplemegan
    I saw this a few weeks ago and I'm still not really sure whether I liked it or not...
  • MeetMeinMontauk
    March 3, 2012
    MeetMeinMontauk
    Natalie was fantastic (duh). Very beautifully done. Very.
  • paulsandberg
    February 12, 2012
    paulsandberg
    I have to say I am not much of a fan of dance, though I do appreciate the high degree of commitment and concentration involved. That being said, Black Swan, which uses the ballet world and whose story in many ways mirrors the sentiments of Swan Lake (to the point that the closing... read more credits give each character a name from the film and a name or character from the ballet) is an inspiring bit of filmmaking art.

    That Aronofsky takes these intertwining stories and balances a bid of madness is the true genius of the film. The story, taken at face value, is not revolutionary, but once you filter in the madness factor, where what you are seeing may or may not be filtered through that perspective, the film gains an entirely different, higher level, which makes the film's ending a truly powerful statement. As the lead character Nina purrs, "it was perfect", you get the idea that perfection, especially in art, is but a fleeting moment, and yet that overriding sense of unity with one's self and one's art, even if only for a second, is the grail worth devoting a life of sacrifice for.

    Natalie Portman's performance as Nina is certainly worth the Oscar she won, as she conveys an almost split personality to perfection. As she slowly comes to embrace the "dark queen" of her psyche, her entire demeanor changes - facial expressions harden, her voice goes from timid squeak to confident fullness, even her eyes seem more sparkly and alive as her two halves become, if not one, then something where there is strength.

    I also was very impressed with Vincent Cassel's work as Leroy, the head of the theatre company who cajoles Nina into searching for that other side of herself, which is exemplified by Mila Kunis, the embodiment of the Black Swan who, by friendship or other motives, drives the White Swan, Nina, into venturing to the dark side.

    There's certainly a lot to chew on here, as you've probably gathered by what I've already penned. One can argue about the characters' motives, and essentially who they really are, for days since all is filtered through Nina's warped lens. Does her mother really resent her, or is that just some kind of warped perspective on Nina's part (and taken further, is dear old mom just as susceptible to psychotic break as her daughter? The odd art that mom paints makes you guess).

    I was a bit taken aback by the first half of the film, finding it over simplified and somewhat cliché, while a reasonable look inside a ballet company; until I realized that the quirkiness was all because it came from the perspective of one really quirky character. Once that became clear, it gave the film a certain creative license to be oddly stilted - which made the premier performance of Swan Lake all the more powerful and breathtaking.

    Truly, this film will probably rise in stature given time, if for nothing more than Portman's performance and this truism: "perfection isn't just about control, it's about letting go" - if you are an artist in any way, shape or form, this seemingly contradictory statement is the absolute truth, and the true transcendence of art.
  • stormyweather980
    February 5, 2012
    stormyweather980
    Just average to me...wanted to see it cause Natalie Portman's really hot, and because of all the awards it received, but...I just didn't see what all the fuss was about, personally.
  • TheGame90
    January 29, 2012
    TheGame90
    And the Oscar goes to: ...The King's Speach.
    ...I'm real happy for you....I'mma let you finnish. But Aronofsky had one of the best movies of all time....Of all time... And that's exactly what it is. I've never feelt like this in the theather before. Absolutely crazy. Portman does... read more the role of her life. And everybody else...magnificant. It grabs a hold of you....and you don't want it to let go. You welcome the horror. And you can just feel the passion thoughout the whole movie. I would really like it to be one hour longer. Cause when you feel the last scene it the air...you feel sad that it's almost over. But then they nail that aswell. And you gotta feel good. And the music...let's not even get into that... It's almost like I never wanna see it again cause I wanna keep the memory of that day. But I have to...because it was so good. If you havn't seen this movie. Don't wait. As I said...One of the best movies of all time
  • Tomassgringo
    January 20, 2012
    Tomassgringo
    Dark, strange and edgy enough to keep it interesting, but still something was missing for me. I felt the acting was incredible!
  • fb223580
    November 22, 2011
    fb223580
    I was not expecting that.
    ***SPOILER Alert***
    I was expecting it to be set in the real world, and it took my unsuspecting mind and raped it. The movie was actually beautiful and Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis are ridiculously hot in it, I would watch it again except it (and Wino... read morena Ryder, and my friends simulating Winona Ryder after the movie at 1am before I had to drive home alone) scared the crap out of me.

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Critic Reviews

Rafer Guzman
January 3, 2011
Rafer Guzman, Newsday

Practice makes perfectly insane in Black Swan, a tale of one ballerina's psychosexual freakout. Full Review

Lisa Kennedy
December 17, 2010
Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post

At times, Black Swan verges on laughably old school. Still, what a brazen, bold riff on the cost - physical, emotional - of art. Full Review

Roger Moore
December 15, 2010
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

"Black Swan" is that rare holiday Oscar contender that is a movie for all seasons, a film that is all things to all people Full Review

Tom Long
December 10, 2010
Tom Long, Detroit News

There's a delirium that runs through Black Swan, a sense of stress and anguish and mad momentum, that's both exhilarating and terrifying. Full Review

Bill Goodykoontz
December 10, 2010
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic

Taken in the too-much-is-never-enough vein, "Black Swan" is a fantastic experience... Full Review

Colin Covert
December 9, 2010
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

The film picks at our deepest anxieties -- injury, disfigurement, loss of a coveted job, loss of identity, loss of sanity. In most fright films, danger lurks in the shadows. Here it's grinning from a ... Full Review

Dana Stevens
December 3, 2010
Dana Stevens, Slate

Portman toils slavishly to realize Aronofsky's mad vision. It isn't her fault that, despite Black Swan's visual splendor and bursts of grand guignol excess, this emotionally inert movie never does gro... Full Review

Rick Groen
December 3, 2010
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail

Darren Aronofsky has made one of those rare movies that gets right in your face and demands a response: Love me, hate me, just don't mess with Mister In-Between. Full Review

Chris Vognar
December 3, 2010
Chris Vognar, Dallas Morning News

It's the kind of nightmare melodrama that rouses the best from director Darren Aronofsky, of a piece with his dark spirals Requiem for a Dream and The Wrestler. Full Review

Christopher Orr
December 3, 2010
Christopher Orr, The Atlantic

Black Swan is vivid and engrossing, teetering between trash and art, a sleek exploitation borrowing from (among others) Fight Club and The Fly, Mulholland Drive and Persona. Full Review

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Facts

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    • Thomas Leroy/ The Gentleman: Virginal girl pure and sweet dropped in the body of a swan. She desire freedom. ... twin black swan dricks and seduces him. White swan heaps off a cliff and in death finds freedom.
    • Thomas Leroy/ The Gentleman: Imprecise, but effortless.
    • Thomas Leroy/ The Gentleman: The only person standing in your way is you. It's time to let her go. Lose yourself.
    • Thomas Leroy/ The Gentleman: I have a homework assignment for you. Go home, and touch yourself.
    • Thomas Leroy/The Gentleman: Nina, what did you do?
    • Nina Sayers/ The Swan Queen: I felt it. Perfect. I was perfect.
    • Lilly: You fantasized about me!
    • Nina: Shut up!
    • Lilly: Was I good?
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  • In which movie did Miss Swan find it difficult to say as she put on a corset?  Answer »
  • which two men were in love with Elizabeth Swan in "Pirates of the Carrabian the Black Pearl"  Answer »
  • after saving elizabeth swan by cutting her corset,a english guard says "never would have thought of that." jack sparrow then says "clearly,you've never been to___" in pirates of the caribbean "curse of the black pearl"  Answer »
  • who is elizibeth swan in "pirates of the carribbean the curse of the black pearl"?  Answer »
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