A young woman learns all about masturbation, and then goes crazy.
Nominated for:
Best Actress - Natalie Portman
Cinematography - Matthew Libatique
Directing - Darren Aronofsky
Best Picture
Also nominated for:
Film Editing - Andrew Weisblum
Sound Mixing
As a big fan of Darren Aronofsky, it's basically impossible for me not to gush about the composition of this film. Known for his meticulous attention to detail, you can trust when watching this movie that every part of the set, every item of clothing, every cut, and every music cue has been carefully selected and placed just so, all for the purpose of backing and amplifying the themes and the narrative. In this respect, the film is a breath of fresh air amongst the run-of-the-mill Oscar-bait schlop.
This movie looks amazing, so much so that I'm a little surprised it didn't garner more technical awards (art direction, make-up, costume design, etc). Not that the film is flashy - far from it. The muted grays and faded pinks that make up most of Natalie Portman's wardrobe connect the stark black-and-white sets and costumes around her. The score mixes contemporary music with Swan Lake's classic score and amps up Portman's transformation into the black swan, or rather, her descent into madness. Simple, fluid camera work keep us balanced between the subjective and the somewhat-less subjective, while solid acting takes 2-dimensional-ish characters to a higher level.
My one issue doesn't have much to do with the actual film, but more with its contribution to a larger social dialog that links female sexuality with bat-shit insanity. Glenn Close in Fatal Attractions, Sisey Spacek in Carrie, Cameron Diaz in Vanilla Sky... Hell, how about even Ophelia from Hamlet? All these women struggle with their sexuality, which results in murder, madness, arson, suicide, and/or dead rabbits.
Ladies, when watching this movie, please remind yourselves that masturbation, or any kind of consensual sexual activity, does not, in anyway, (unless it leads to undiagnosed syphilis, which turns your brain into cottage cheese) make you go crazy. Natalie Portman's Golden Globe acceptance speech, however, may. (Crazy with adorableness, that is!).
Eli
Rating: 4 for innovation, 4 for emotional content, and 5 for cohesiveness.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
I agree that female sexuality is often portrayed as a gateway to mental illness/insanity. Her obssession over the role coupled with extreme malnutrition could have been used as the main factors.
ReplyDeleteI really hope that Darren Aronofsky brings the same attention to detail to his Wolverine movie. I know he already has Hugh Jackman bulking up.