Black Swan

(I figured, my last post was entitled "White Lightnin'" so I thought I would talk a bit about "Black Swan.")

Well, February 27, 2011, Natalie Portman joined the ranks of cinematic history by winning the Academy Award for Best Actress for her work in the film "Black Swan." Her win came as no surprise since she has been racking up awards since the film opened last December. Did Natalie deserve it? I think so. Actually, to be honest, I was skeptical when I first heard about the film. I downloaded a copy of the script. I read it. I honestly did not think Natalie could pull it off. Why?

Because, Natalie has always seemed so constrained on film; as if she was afraid to let go and enjoy herself. (That's a running theme with me that I will expand on in a later post.) I have seen a lot of Natalie Portman films. I'm a Star Wars fan and since she graced the prequels with her presence--thank you--then I thought it only fair to do my part and check out future endeavors. I do this with every actor who has been in a Star Wars film. It's my way of saying "thanks."

I'm not going to go into a long diatribe of the good ("V for Vendetta"/"The Professional"/"Mars Attacks"), the bad ("The Other Boleyn Girl"/"Free Zone"/"Goya's Ghost"), and the ugly ("Where the Heart Is"/"Brothers") of Natalie's film career. There are some films that I had to scratch my head in wonder as to why she even bothered showing up. And yes, I have to admit that in the first and third of the Star Wars prequels, she looks downright bored. But there was potential there, long ago, in "The Professional." And I guess we were all waiting for Natalie to sweep us off our collective feet. And she did that with "Black Swan." Watching "Black Swan" astonished me. Why?

Because, for the first time, I felt like Natalie was truly enjoying herself. She was enjoying the suffering, physical pain, and drama of the story. As her character, Nina, slips further and further into chaos and the inability to separate fantasy from reality, Portman lets go of whatever inhibitions she previously had. There's a moment after the "dark queen" emerges when, on screen, you can actually see Natalie surrender to the part. She's enjoying herself, enjoying the "letting go" moment, so to speak.

So impressive was it, that even my sister--who's never been impressed with Portman's acting chops--was pleasantly surprised. Yes, "Black Swan" can be a bit over the top in terms of visual metaphors. There are a couple of shots that had me cringing. But it is the subtle moments, the whispers, and the brief flashes between light and dark that stand out.

Every one has said that this is the role and performance they have been waiting for from Natalie Portman. And she delivered. Only time will tell if it was indeed the role of a lifetime.