the black swan part two

Okay, so just before I get started I just want to say that...Well, I still haven't decided how I feel about this movie.

Let's just examine the SamFactors, shall we?

Basically, everyone that reads this knows I have a serious problem when it comes to evaluating movies. One, I came of age in a time when my colleges were watching things like Avatar which was acclaimed for not plot or acting, but more like how-much-money-one-can-spend-on-movies-to-make-them-look-cool-ness (blasphemy, I know, sorry world). Two, I have always been inclined to use movies as an escape; as somone who normally isn't deeply unhappy with her life, I've always been drawn to glitzy, saccharine and happy movies - preferably with singing. Thus, I give you this declaimer: I am not a movie expert, nor have I really experienced much of life, I am inclined to like immature and saccharine movies and therefore have absolutely no reason to be taken seriously when discussing this movie.

Nevertheless, the internet is always lacking meaningless words (cough) so I give you! MORE BLACK SWAN COMMENTARY!

I think part of the criterion for a good movie is how much people talk about it; no, I don't mean like "wow, that movie seriously sucked ass" obviously, I'm talking about when people discuss a movie with the intention of coming to conclusions or analyzing it. I've definitely done that for this movie and so I can conclude that it was, at the very least, interesting, if not necessarily good.


I mentioned this before in my previous post, but the shaking camera had to go. Decidedly, not only was it uncalled for and cheap, but it also prevented the audience from appreciating the actual dance. Natalie Portman trained for months for this role (although someone told me today that she's pregnant with the choreographer's baby? I find that hard to believe, since anorexics find it difficult to conceive and she is definitely borderline anorexic...) and I just think that they should've focused more on this "art" that she worked so hard for, in both reality and the movie. By forcing the audience to see through the shaking lens whenever it was from her perspective, I essentially couldn't see the dancing, we were limited to just the feeling of the scene. If you're gonna make a movie about dance, show me the dance.

Even when she turns into the black swan, you're not watching her turns, you're just watching the weird special effects of the wings. (which, by the way, totally ruined her form. haha)

Finally, I'd just like to say that I'm no prude, but was Jackie eating out Nat totally called for? I think not. Bleh.

I still can't decide how I feel about this movie. It was confusing and strange but because I'm so often told that my taste in movies limits my understanding of them and appreciation of "good," I'm sure that this movie is worth seeing, if you don't mind being tortured by images of a woman stabbing herself in the face with a nail file. I had to watch "27 Dresses" twice today just to get that picture out of my head. Not that I mind mindless movies about weddings, but still. (shudders, that woman was so creepy!) Well. That's all that I can think of to say about "Black Swan."

In other news, I finally watched the episode of 30 Rock from this season that was live. HILARIOUS. Just FYI ("Why does everything look like a mexican soap opera?" haha). Parks and Rec is still also funny, but watch it BEFORE 30 Rock, because the latter is just so much better that if you watch Parks and Rec second, you'll be supremely let down.

Happy break!