Black Swan

Back in September there was a lot of buzz for TIFF, downtown and not in the press, as crowds scampered for a copy of the festival guide and while standing in line to pick up their subscription picks. No matter what you personally thought, it was clear 'Barney's Version' and 'Black Swan' were the tickets, the red carpet and the gala you wanted to be at, if the thrill of the moment turned you on.

My picks were made and my budget did not include either as a last minute inclusions besides the films I was scheduled to see presented major conflicts with time and days in the festival. I do not know that of any of the films I did see I would, by the benefit of hindsight, have dropped in exchange for the big screen experience and the orgy of having been there for either of the other two though I could have lived without ever having watched a film at the Elgin Theatre, a mistake I will never make again. Say what you will about the grandeur of the venue, The Elgin is not my idea of a cinematic moment.

It was precisely because of TIFF that I broke my rule on Richler and bought a copy of his book, now in reprint to cash in on the movie's popularity. As expected I found it a memoir from an angry old Montreal Jew that was not a terrible read if you could get past the tone, tenor and text, which is to say, it is impossible to overlook any of the negatives while attempting to enjoy the story. For me the best I could hope for, was to understand it. The Giamatti casting choice struck me as absurd only because it was perfectly type cast for the range of characters he tends to play. That I bothered at all is more about being a pseudo-cinephile and nothing at all about being Canadian. 'Black Swan' on the other hand was completely, something different.

Natalie Portman would be high on most guys lists well before she reached the legal age of consent and this film seemed a perfect break out role for her as a woman. That symmetry that made this irresistible was in that the character is a flawed artist. I know she has had other roles since 'Beautiful Girls' but for the most part they failed to cash in on the artistic prowess she demonstrated as the 15 year old ingenue. You knew by the strength of the trailers that this would be Portman's role and it is. She is incredibly small, her stature a mere 5'3 and if she tips the scales at more than a hundred pounds I would be surprised, elements which come together nicely as a ballet dancer and doing what film does best, allowing her to play a younger character.

Whatever insight I have into the world of dance comes courtesy of the character study I was able to undertake while in a relationship. Gail Gerber, once described as 'one of the most beautiful women in Toronto', is a west coast girl; cousin-cum-sister of Sharon Cullen, one of the truly great loves of my life. Together their intent was to regale me with tales of Terry Southern, the great dialogue writer of my time as witnessed by 'Magic Christian', 'Dr. Strangelove' and 'Easy Rider' ,who was Gail's illicit lover until his death. He stole her away in her youth when he was already married and severely wasted and ravaged by lifestyle and to some extent by age. Gail's Hollywood career never amounted to much after Terry and it is doubtful in today's light if 'Beach Blanket Bingo' could suggest that her career was seriously destined for any more than being a beautiful babe. Her undeniably legitimate talent was as a 15 year old dancer with Les Grandes Ballets Canadiennes based in Montreal. Tripping on acid while dipping toes into the water surrounding Bowen Island, her feet evidence of a life in the dance world. Twisted and deformed you would wince trying to imagine the pain endured over a lifetime of trying to be perfect and 'to fit' as in belong. Essentially the same storyline in 'Black Swan' and told more in images than articulated through dialogue.

Aronofsky is largely unknown to me as a director, I was unimpressed by 'Pie' the mathematical piece in 98 and I am not enough of a Mickey Rourke believer to have put 'The Wrestler' on my list. In 'Black Swan' he does nail the essentials needed to provoke an emotionally understood story in spite of glaring improbabilities of script. Easily one of the most powerful and intense film experiences in my recent memory.

Portman in my opinion didn't sell out for a pay cheque in this and was able to avoid nudity in what seems like an impossible pitch. Sex and sensuality are the bedrock of this story and are portrayed for the most part in the stage production of Swan Lake which intrinsically is the truth of this story. Ballet like wrestling, it would seem, are blood sports.

I treated myself to a big box screening for my birthday. There were nine of us including myself. It was not TIFF but that is all that was missing. Zowie like 'Hud' only different.