All of us failed to match our dreams of perfection.  ~William Faulkner

…

I finally saw Black Swan and it kind of blew me away. I thought it was amazing. It’s not one of those feel good or make you laugh or watch all the time snuggled up on the couch with hot chocolate kind of movies, but it is one of those movies that leaves an imprint. It was one of those movies that kind of haunts you for awhile after you see it.  It is very disturbing at times but is really beautiful in its own way.

The  movie is described as a psychological thriller/film noir set in the demanding and disciplined world of ballet. The movie deals with a lot of heavy emotional themes: the pursuit of perfection and that perfection isn’t always going to cut it, mother/daughter competition/resentment, religious stigmata,  duality of black and white/ good and evil. One of the major themes in the story that I found myself identifying with as everything unfolded is the idea of the destructive nature of intense self-discipline – becoming your own worst enemy. Haven’t we all been there where the thoughts in your own head can simultaneously push you to be the best version of yourself and also way over the edge? The pursuit of perfection can back fire. This is what you see happening to Natalie Portman’s character, Nina as the movie progresses.

We will be seeing a lot if Natalie during award season this year, because she will surely be nominated for Best Actress (already has for a Golden Globe). The girl deserves it, she really brought it. Her ability to play -literally and figuratively here-the black and white swan so perfectly is amazing to watch on screen. She is what makes the movie so emotionally gripping and haunting.

And my vote for Best Supporting Actress (sorry Mila) goes to the costumes. The.costumes.were.amazing

In case you didn’t hear, the sisters of Rodarte (see features I have done on their work here and here) did all of the costumes for the Swan Lake ballet production in the movie (which is like no Swan Lake I’ve ever seen…) as well as two gorgeous gowns for Winona Ryder’s character (in black) and Natalie’s character (in white) for a Ball.  These two ladies had to design and construct tutus – not an easy task. I love what they did. Tulle, feathers and jewels, oh my! The white swan is all soft and pretty – the tutu skirt was covered in angora fur and the swan feathers are clean and fluffy and perfectly white. The black swan costume is more harsh – netting coming out everywhere and spiky black feathers. The topper on the costume is a tiara crown made with burnt copper metal pieces shaped into talons and stalagtites. The visual look of these incredibly constructed tutus and headpieces really added to the beauty and visual nature of the film. The costumes with their level of thematic detail and construction took the movie to another level in my mind. They were literally a supporting cast.

On a side note: Can we also talk about Winona Ryder in this movie? Wow. She’s in it for about 3 scenes but her character single-handedly creates a presence and tone in the movie that sets the stage for all of the drama. She’s totally great.

…

Screen shots of the Rodarte costumes below. I love that the Mulleavy sisters shared their initital sketches of the costumes in the online world. Beautiful work.

If you can handle intense movies and appreciate beautiful costumes or just the world of ballet, I highly recommend this movie. ♥

…

…

Kate Mulleavy’s sketches of the key costumes