Black Swan

Rated R for strong sexual content, disturbing violent images, language and some drug use.

Black Swan is an “art film.” This means that film critics, women who favor black leotards and Hermes silk scarves, and European men in pointy shoes and bulky sweaters will love it and, of course, in this specific case, so will aficionados of the ballet. As for the rest of the movie-going public, I am not so sure. The pedestrian in me thought this would make a great short film for the artsy cinema festival, but a full length movie about an obsessive ballet dancer is quite another danse de caractère as I often say to my pals down at the local “meat and three” when we are talking about such things.

Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman not looking at all like Natalie Portman) is an obsessed ballet dancer driven by her neurotic and suffocating mother (Barbara Hershey), a former ballerina whose career was cut short by her pregnancy (of Nina). This over-the-top, mother-daughter relationship would make a Freudian have seizures.

Nina wins the role of The Swan Queen in a New York ballet company production of Swan Lake. The company is headed by a rather oily and revolting French cad (Vincent Cassel). Nina is replacing a fading star Winona Ryder. (Out with the old; in with the new.) Her fellow dancer and competition is Lily (Mila Kunis). As you can imagine, a lot of melodrama swirls around this self-absorbed quartet.

I have not seen Swan Lake since I was subjected to it at one of those children’s concerts back in my youth, but I think the plot of the movie follows rather closely the plot of the ballet. In fact, in the credits, each of the characters has both their “human” name and their “Swan Lake” name. Isn’t that clever and cute?

This is some excellent acting, especially from Portman and Hershey. And the metaphors fly about like a flock of ballerinas on postage-stamp stage. The Black Swan is some pretty heavy-handed artsyness. This is a film for a specific cultural demographic. Be forewarned.

I also noticed a rather obvious literary allusion to Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” (you know, the guy who turns into an insect). In short: madness, obsession, and tragedy; a jolly subject for the Christmas season.

The Fighter

Rated R for language throughout, drug content, some violence and sexuality.

From pas de chat, I take you to a real barnburner. (A clever segue from ballet to boxing terminology, don’t you think?)

The Fighter is the story of boxer Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) who was trained by his brother Dicky (Christian Bale), a former boxer turned drug addict and, for a while, semi-celebrity prison resident.

I suspect that many a Son of Erin might cringe at this portrayal of the working class Irish from Lowell, Massachusetts. However, for grit and drama, this is one provocative portrayal of an interesting family. As in the case of The Black Swan, “Mama” (Melissa Leo) is somewhat destructive. Micky’s mom is obsessed with older brother Dicky (the crack head) but still manages the career of younger brother Micky…unfortunately to his detriment. Eventually, Micky breaks away from brother and mother and starts becoming successful, but he eventually loses his momentum and stumbles, metaphorically. Family bonds are strong and eventually Micky realizes “family is family” and is able to get the extended clan to go from dysfunctional to functional.

Mark Wahlberg is just fine and dandy as Micky but Christian Bale has the better role and wastes no time in stealing scene after scene from every actor in the film. However, the other actors go for “the real” rather than high, representative portrayals. You can practically smell the corned beef and cabbage and cigarettes in this movie.

The supporting cast is as compelling as the top stars. Worthy of note is the comic “Greek chorus” of Micky and Dicky’s sisters. Without the mega acting talent, however, this may have been a forgettable story, all too familiar to a film audience.

What a pair of films I bring to your attention this week: a film about ballet and a film about boxing. At first glance, two totally different subjects…you might, at first, think. Not so. There are more than a few parallels here: obsession, family (and family rivalry), jealousy, and a drive to excel…to list a few. (Not to mention the caliber of acting.) Taken together or separately, these two films are heady and serious film making.

Black Swan earns three and a half bow ties out of five.

The Fighter both earns four bow ties out of five.