Kris and I finally went to see Black Swan about a week ago, and I must say, I was thoroughly impressed. The costuming, make-up, choreography, direction and not least of all, the acting were all superb. It definitely inspired me to return to my dance classes!
I won't go into a summary of the plot, but there is much more to this film than what appears on surface level. For me, the most intriguing aspect of the plot is the duality in the characters, which is reflected in the roles of the White Swan and the Black Swan. Duality is a part of human nature, and the roles that Nina [Natalie Portman] is asked to play in the ballet company's production simply place this duality under a microscope. Nina is inherently good, and must learn how to be a "bad girl" from her rival Lily [Mila Kunis] in order to secure her role as the Swan Queen. Nina gets a glimpse of her not-so-rosy future in her foil, Beth [Winona Ryder]. All in all, a very intricate plot which deserves further analysis. :)
The design house Rodarte was responsible for all of the costuming, even the warm-ups worn by the actors and dancers. I am a costume FREAK, and I might be reaching here, but I think the costumes will at least get an Oscar nod. The make-up was great as well, and of course the MUAs used my favorite cosmetic line [MAC...in case you didn't know...] to pull off the looks.
Only two theaters in town were showing the film, one of them being the Arbor, which exclusively shows independent / limited release films. They had painted the windows in a wonderful art deco design for the film, and later I realized that they took the design from these wonderful international promo posters, designed by the firm LaBoca.
[I'm especially partial to this one...]
If you visit LaBoca's website, you can buy t-shirts with these designs from their shop. If you want the poster, I found them at MoviePosterShop.com They don't match anything in my house, but I'll find way to put it up on a wall somewhere!
Have you been to see Black Swan yet? What are your impressions? Leave a comment below!
Today, I showed some of my students the 1986 motion picture version of The Nutcracker, which was performed by the Pacific Northwest Ballet Company under the direction of choreographer Kent Stowall and costume/set design by Maurice Sendak (effing AWESOME!). This rendition holds many memories for me, because I used to watch it every year around this time as a child, and it is partially responsible for my love of ballet.
Although most of the boys groaned and complained about my selection, I was surprised to see most of the kids intently watching the film...and asking questions. Some of them made comments about the costuming and set designs looking like something out of Where the Wild Things Are, and were surprised to learn that Maurice Sendak had a huge hand in bringing this production to life. They did have a hard time following the story, but I helped them on the way.
Here are some of my favorite things about this version of The Nutcracker:
[1] It was a Christmas tradition in my house...until they stopped airing it on television. *tear*
[2] The sets, costumes and attention to detail are astonishing! I am a costume freak, and these costumes were very well done.
[3] The music...just beautiful. Maybe I'm partial to this recording because it was my first introduction to The Nutcracker, but this trumps all others in my book. A selection from The Queen of Spades (another Tchaikovsky composition) was also incorporated into the music, and it is the only piece which contains singing.
[4]The choreography was impeccable, and the dancers display great technique. How I still wish for that killer turn-out and the ability to get the perfect pointe!
[5] My favorite part? The peacock's dance. For various reasons I won't get into....other than that costume gives me life!
The best part? I discovered that both the film and the abridged soundtrack are available on iTunes, and Netflix is also making the film available as an Instant Viewing selection. As for me...I still have my VHS copy of the movie, and I kept my VCR for that sole reason. Get into the spirit this Christmas.
(Photo credits: Denofgeek.com, Angela Sterling via Seattlepi.com)
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