Post by Suzy on Mar 13, 2014 13:16:35 GMT -5
Last night, I was looking forward to seeing a movie I missed when it was first out in the cinema. It was on one of the channels here.
The movie in question was 'Black Swan', set in the world of classical ballet. This film had been hyped to be very good and got an Oscar or two, one for best actress. So, as I love any kind of ballet in any form, having studied it for ten years from a tiny tot to lanky teenager, I was so looking forward to a treat.
But...
NO. It was a huge disappointment. First of all because the main part was played by someone who was a very poor dancer, quite klutzy to say the least (sorry Natalie Portman). She wouldn't have made it through the first audition for the corps de ballet, never mind any main position. Then then story was so melodramatic and simplistic, from the heroine's self-harming and weird relationship with her mother to her flirtation with the director of the ballet company. As for the choreography 
... About four basic steps repeated over and over again.
Everyone was overacting and it was as if there was always an arrow pointing to a particular actor, saying 'look she is being manipulative', or 'look, he's sexually harassing the heroine'.
This, when there have been such terrific dance movies in the past, like 'The Turning Point', which was a huge treat for ballet lovers, with top dancers in all parts or 'A Chorus Line'.
Why couldn't they at least have cast a top dancer in the main part? Dancers are generally good actors, as they have to learn those techniques as well as dancing. I feel the whole film was made thinking the general public is easily duped.
Needless to say, I watched half an hour and then gave up. Glad I didn't spend money on a cinema ticket.
The movie in question was 'Black Swan', set in the world of classical ballet. This film had been hyped to be very good and got an Oscar or two, one for best actress. So, as I love any kind of ballet in any form, having studied it for ten years from a tiny tot to lanky teenager, I was so looking forward to a treat.
But...
NO. It was a huge disappointment. First of all because the main part was played by someone who was a very poor dancer, quite klutzy to say the least (sorry Natalie Portman). She wouldn't have made it through the first audition for the corps de ballet, never mind any main position. Then then story was so melodramatic and simplistic, from the heroine's self-harming and weird relationship with her mother to her flirtation with the director of the ballet company. As for the choreography 
... About four basic steps repeated over and over again.Everyone was overacting and it was as if there was always an arrow pointing to a particular actor, saying 'look she is being manipulative', or 'look, he's sexually harassing the heroine'.
This, when there have been such terrific dance movies in the past, like 'The Turning Point', which was a huge treat for ballet lovers, with top dancers in all parts or 'A Chorus Line'.
Why couldn't they at least have cast a top dancer in the main part? Dancers are generally good actors, as they have to learn those techniques as well as dancing. I feel the whole film was made thinking the general public is easily duped.
Needless to say, I watched half an hour and then gave up. Glad I didn't spend money on a cinema ticket.
