Tea at Trianon: The Black Swan (2010)

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

The Black Swan (2010)

I thought it sounded like a totally weird movie and Madame Delors, whom I trust implicitly, agrees, saying:

This is a problem for a film that has been billed as a “psychological thriller.” It should have begun with a near-normal character and slowly plunged her, and us, deeper and deeper into the world of her nightmares. Here, it is obvious from the outset that Nina is so seriously ill that she has not a chance to pull off the part she has been assigned. It is only a matter of guessing how much damage she will inflict on herself and others. Without suspense, a thriller is not much of a thriller.

Also, and I readily admit that it is personal, I have trouble with films where I cannot find one single likable character. Because we see everyone through Nina’s distorted vision, we perceive all other characters as threatening, malicious, evil. As for Nina herself, I felt sorry for her, but could not identify with. Natalie Portman is beautiful, and manages to convey Nina’s extreme fragility. Yet this tour de force performance is more overwrought than convincing. On many occasions I caught myself thinking “Here’s Natalie trying really, really hard for an Oscar.”.

Unknown said...: I have no desire to see this film.; March 2, 2011 at 10:27:00 AM EST
Julygirl said...: That is why it did not receive an Oscar for best film.; March 2, 2011 at 11:35:00 PM EST
Pablo the Mexican said...: The Occult Interpretation of the Movie Black Swan:

http://vigilantcitizen.com/?p=6223

It gives conceptual insight of what is happening.

*; March 5, 2011 at 11:47:00 PM EST