Ok Ok ballerinas. Yeah I saw the Nutcracker in kindergarden like so what? That shit was tame there was a scary rat or something, but like whatever right?
WRONG.
This Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler, Requiem For A Dream) directed film is fucked up. Natalie Portman stars as a ballerina (Nina) crazed by her lead role in a ballet. That is essentially the plot. Pretty simple until you add:
-Natalie Portman got viciously thin for the role. Did I mention her character is Anorexic? Oh and she scratches (read: digs nails in to) her back as a nervous habit.
-Oh and her mother (Barbara Hershey) is insane. She used to be a ballerina and is trying to protect (read: OVERBEARINGLY OVER PROTECT) her.
- A remarkable Vincent Cassel as her sexually exploitative director.
-Throw in Mila Kunis as her wicked hot and manipulative competition.
-A nice little sub-plot -- Winona Ryder as former star ballerina. now she is too old to be a star. Solution? She hurls herself in to traffic off screen. Does she die? Nope that would be too tidy.
- Hallucinations. Not fun puff the magic dragon ones. Like pretty fucked up ones.
-Lots of scary music
Yeah. The film is very psychological. As you watch Nina go crazy you feel like you're going crazy. The cinematography is also very claustrophobic. All the shots are very tight and intense and close and loud. There are these scene of Nina's mother clipping her nails, something kind of mundane but it just becomes horrific. Every nail clip makes you jump. At some point I had to remind my self to breathe, I was on edge well after the movie.
The ballet score spilled into non-ballet scenes and there was lets of tension in the film score over all. It made small scenes grandiose and beautiful and scary. That was the point though I guess Take something beautiful: Ballerinas in gorgeous Rodarte dresses, and go beyond that and make it scary.
Truly gripping. Go see it.
oh and there is an ecstacy-makeout-eatout-scene. It's hot. and scary. --->
Sweet.
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