The Thin Red Line (20th Century Fox Home Ent.): Terrence Malick’s stunning World War II movie about US troops fighting at the Battle of Guadalcanal gets the HD treatment at long last. His long awaited return to the big screen after a twenty absence is a visually stunning and hypnotic meditation on war and man. The all star ensemble cast features Jim Caviezel, Sean Penn, Ben Chaplin, Nick Nolte, Elias Koteas and John Cusack in key roles. Look out for John Toll’s incredible cinematography and Hans Zimmer’s remarkable score, which is the finest of his career. [Buy it on Blu-ray or DVD]
Black Swan (20th Century Fox Home Ent.): Intense drama about a ballerina (Natalie Portman) in a New York production of Swan Lake who starts to have a meltdown as the role takes a physical and mental toll on her. Directed by Darren Aronofsky, it features a powerhouse performance from Portman and is an exhilarating mix of The Red Shoes, Repulsion and the body horror of David Cronenberg. Riffing heavily on the raw source material of Swan Lake itself, it proved an unlikely box office hit and won Portman an Oscar for Best Actress. [Buy it on Blu-ray and DVD] [Read or full review]
ALSO OUT
El Cid (Anchor Bay Entertainment UK) [Blu-ray / Normal] Gulliver’s Travels (20th Century Fox Home Ent.) [Blu-ray / Normal] John Carpenter’s The Ward (Warner Home Video) [Blu-ray / Normal] The Next Three Days (Lionsgate UK) [Blu-ray / Normal] The Runaway (ITV DVD) [Blu-ray / Normal] The Walking Dead: Season 1 (Entertainment One) [Blu-ray / Normal] Tigerland (20th Century Fox Home Ent.) [Blu-ray / Normal]
Black Swan is set to become the top domestic film in 2010 for parent studio 20th Century Fox.
It has currently made $97m in the US and already has a combined worldwide gross of $145m.
This is fairly staggering when you consider that Darren Aronofsky’s film is a product of their specialty division Fox Searchlight and not the major studio.
In addition the film was not an easy sell, as executives feel safer green-lighting sequels and remakes rather than psychological thrillers set in the world of ballet.
Fox struggled in 2010 with a series of underperforming films, only offset by the phenomenon of Avatar which grossed 408m in the US.
In addition the Christmas releases for the studio were the relative disappointments of Gulliver’s Travels ($181m gross on a budget of $112m) and Love and Other Drugs ($90m gross on a $30m budget).
Black Swan was made for a mere $13 million, with Cross Creek Pictures and Fox Searchlight splitting the costs after a previous round of financing fell apart. (To put the budgets into perspective, Black Swan cost just one eighth of what the Narnia sequel did).
After its world premiere at the Venice film festival, it played to acclaim and buzz on the festival circuit and a canny platform release in December has seen it rewarded with big audiences and five Oscar nominations.
But what accounts for the remarkable success of the film?
“I think the largest factor in the film’s success is originality. People love to go to the movies and see something they can’t put in a little box”.
One of the film’s producers Brian Oliver offers his take:
“I think the whole year of independent film in the best picture category is showing that you can make commercial artsy films at a budget that can perform at studio levels. I’m more surprised that it’s going to hit the $100 million domestic mark than by what it’s doing overseas.”
According to surveys the film has been especially popular with young women under-25, an audience usually starved on bad romantic comedies starring Katherine Heigl or Kate Hudson.
But does the daring and trippy nature of the film suggest that studios will be willing to take chances on more unusual projects?
Fox Searchlight have released a video showing how many of the visual effects in Black Swan were achieved.
Darren Aronofsky’s dark ballerina drama might not seem like a conventional visual effects movie, but when you see this video you’ll realise why they were central to the film.
* WARNING: There are major spoilers in this video, so don’t watch if you haven’t seen the film *
The Dilemma (Universal): Directed by Ron Howard, this comedy is about a Chicago car designer (Vince Vaughn) who discovers that the wife (Winona Ryder) of his best friend and business partner (Kevin James) is having an affair. However, various circumstances prevent him from telling the truth to his friend and this in turn causes problems with his own girlfriend (Jennifer Connelly).
Written by Allan Loeb, it deserves credit for trying to be something more than a run-of-the-mill romantic comedy but several elements conspire against it. The lead characters are not especially sympathetic, which doesn’t help when the film tries to be more serious and the idea of James and Ryder as a believable on-screen couple is ludicrous.
There are promising moments but mostly the humour appears to be wearily copied from the Judd Apatow school of comedy: crude slapstick undercut by cheesy life lessons. For a comedy, it has an impressive visual look – shot by Salvatore Totino – but ultimately it drags for much of its running time and just isn’t that funny.
Given the lack of buzz, hideous poster and flurry of films out at UK cinemas, Universal will be hoping that undiscerning couples will opt to see this. [Nationwide / 12A]
Morning Glory (Paramount): A comedy-drama about a TV producer (Rachel McAdams) who gets the job working for a US morning show with two contrasting presenters (Diane Keaton and Harrison Ford).
Directed by Roger Michell and written by Aline Brosh McKenna, who penned The Devil Wears Prada, it has some similarities to the 2006 film, with a young woman thrust into a powerful position at a high-pressured workplace. The mixed reviews in the US and lacklustre box office probably mean that UK audiences aren’t going to embrace it, despite the startling coincidence of the film’s TV show sharing the same name (‘Daybreak’) with ITV’s recently relaunched breakfast programme. [Nationwide / 12A]
Black Swan (20th Century Fox): Darren Aronofsky’s dark psychological drama explores the world of a ballerina having a meltdown during a production of Swan Lake. When Nina (Natalie Portman) gets the lead part, various factors start causing her problems, including a suffocating mother (Barbara Hershey), a tyrannical director (Vincent Cassell) and a free-spirited rival (Mila Kunis).
Intriguing parallels with The Wrestler abound: both examine the physical and mental costs of being a performer; show the pressures of ageing; feature a character’s desire to connect; and climax with a grand flourish. Black Swan goes further in cranking up the tension and, along with a paranoid, unreliable narrator, there is an unusual amount of visual effects shots that depict the crumbling reality of Nina’s world.
Natalie Portman now seems like a strong favourite for the Best Actress Oscar with her captivating central performance. In what is easily the best part of her career, she conveys a believable kaleidoscope of emotions – including fear, aggression and pain – in a relentless push for artistic perfection.
A bold and exhilarating film, it has deservedly reaped a lot of buzz on the festival circuit, although the heightened style is likely to divide general audiences. Given that it has already grossed $76m in the US on limited release Fox will be quietly confident about its prospects over here with upscale audiences and those curious to see what all the fuss is about. [Read our full review here] [Nationwide / 15]
ALSO OUT
Neds (Entertainment One UK): Peter Mullan’s third feature as a writer and director, after Orphans and The Magdalene Sisters, returns him to the 1970s Glasgow of his youth.
The title stands for “Non Educated Delinquents” and is about about a young man’s journey from prize-winning schoolboy to knife-carrying youth. The cast features Martin Bell, Linda Cuthbert, Richard Mack and Connor McCarron. [Selected cinemas nationwide / 18]
John Carpenter’s The Ward (Warner Bros): The first horror film form John Carpenter in several years involves a young woman (Amber Heard) who is haunted by a mysterious ghost in a psychiatric hospital during the 1960s.
Co-starring Jared Harris, it is very much Carpenter on autopilot with few real scares and an air of predictability hanging over most scenes. [Selected cinemas nationwide / 15]
Get Low (Sony Pictures): A quirky drama about an old man named Felix Bush (Robert Duvall) who lives as a hermit in the woods and surprises the locals by demanding a “living funeral”.
This leads to the owner of a local funeral parlor (Bill Murray) agreeing to let the townsfolk tell Felix the stories they’ve heard about him, but as his ‘funeral’ gets neaerer he promises to reveal why he has been in the woods for so many years. [Selected cinemas nationwide / PG]
I Spit On Your Grave (Anchor Bay Films): A remake of the 1978 horror film, in which a rape victim (Sarah Butler) goes vengeful rampage against the locals perpetrators. Directed by Steven R. Monroe. [Selected cinemas]
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (BFI): A reissue of the 1961 romantic comedy starring Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard.
Honeymooner (Soda Pictures): British film about a twenty-something man (Gerard Kearns) who tries to get his life back on track after a marriage proposal gone wrong. [Selected cinemas]
The Portuguese Nun (ICA Cinema): Drama about a French actress (Leonor Baldaque) who arrives in Lisbon to film a few scenes from an adaptation of the classic 17th-century text Letters of a Portuguese Nun, which details the eponymous figure’s romance with a naval officer.
Ride, Rise, Roar (Kaleidoscope Entertainment): A documentary film following David Byrne and Brian Eno on their tour during 2008–2009, including concert footage and interviews with the musicians and dancers.
Living on Love Alone (BAC Films): French drama from director Isabelle Czajka about a young woman (Anaïs Demoustier) who finds refuge from her soul-destroying jobs with a young actor (Pio Marmaï), who shows her another way to live life.
It never got a release in the US, so remains something of an obscurity, but years later Connelly went on to star in Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream (2000).
There only appears to be a Japanese trailer on YouTube:
And now have a look at the trailer for Black Swan:
You can check them out side-by-side at YouTube Doubler here.
Some of the posters from Etoile are also interesting to compare with the designs for Black Swan.
Was the earlier film any inspiration for Aronofsky?
After strong festival buzz in the Autumn, it scored mostly favourable reviews and already looks like a multiple noiminee at the Oscars this year, with Portman already looking like the strong favourite for Best Actress.
My favourite film music of the year included albums by Trent Reznor, Hans Zimmer and Daft Punk, whilst tracks by various artists including Zack Hemsey and Grizzly Bear also stood out.
BEST SOUNDTRACKS
Tron Legacy (EMI): The sequel to Tron was a mixed bag (great visuals, mediocre script) but the score by Daft Punk was unbeliveably epic, fusing their trademark electronica with an orchestra. [Amazon / YouTube]
Inception (Reprise): Hans Zimmer’s score for Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi blockbuster mixed electronic elements, strings and the guitar of Johnny Marr to brilliant effect. [Amazon / YouTube]
The Social Network (Pid): Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross gave David Fincher’s film about the origins of Facebook a dazzling electronic flavour, at turns pulsating and atmospheric. [Official site / Amazon / YouTube]
The Kids Are Alright (Lakeshore Records): A traditional, but shrewdly assembled collection of traditional and modern songs (featuring the likes of MGMT and David Bowie) which fitted the themes of Lisa Colodenko’s film perfectly. [Amazon / YouTube / The Playlist]
Greenberg (Parlophone): A solid collection of songs from James Murphy alongside tracks by The Steve Miller Band, Duran Duran, Nite Jewel and Galaxie 500. [Amazon / YouTube]
127 Hours (Polydor): Danny Boyle films usually have a memorable soundtrack and this is no exception, featuring music from A.R. Rahman and tracks by various artists including Free Blood, Bill Withers and Sigur Ros. [Amazon / YouTube]
Black Swan (Sony): For Darren Aronofsky’s reworking of Swan Lake, Clint Mansell reworked elements of Tchaikovsky’s original music to spectacular effect. [Amazon / YouTube]
N.B. The soundtracks for Somewhere and Blue Valentine would have easily made the list if they were available to purchase in the UK.
PLAYLIST
The following tracks are not all directly from soundtracks, but may also have featured on trailers and TV spots for various films.
You can download most of these tracks as a Spotify playlist here or just click on the relevant links to listen to them.
An epic escape from a Russian gulag during World War II forms the backdrop for Peter Weir’s first film in seven years.
Loosely based on Slavomir Rawicz’s book “The Long Walk: The True Story of a Trek to Freedom” (more of which later), The Way Back begins with an soldier named Janusz (Jim Sturgess) being sent to a remote Siberian prison camp on trumped up charges of spying.
After enlisting the help of inmates to escape, including an ex-pat American (Ed Harris) and a tough gang member (Colin Farrell), the group venture on a massive trek across Asia where they meet an orphan (Saoirse Ronan), struggle to survive and attempt to reach the safety of India.
Weir shoots everything with convincing detail: the prison camp is believably hellish and the landscapes form a frequently stunning backdrop as the prisoners venture across sub-zero Russia, the Gobi Desert and the Himalayas on their way to India.
Visually, the film feels grittier than one might expect, with D.P. Russell Boyd appearing to use a lot of natural light and the splendour of the landscapes are frequently intercut with shots of blisters and the physical cost of the journey.
The performances all round are solid: Sturgess and Harris stand out as the two lynchpins of the group; Farrell is charmingly gruff; Ronan has presence and depth and Mark Strong is believably seductive as a prison camp veteran with his own agenda.
As a narrative experience, the initial tension of the prison break quickly becomes a fight for survival as the group struggle to eat, stay warm and avoid all manner of hardships involving the harsh landscape.
This means that it lacks conventional tension, but there is a certain pleasure in the gruelling sprawl of the story as they keep moving across a bewildering variety of landscapes and adverse weather conditions on their 4,000-mile trek.
Sequences that particularly stand out are the initial prison break in a blizzard, a lake infested with mosquitoes, a harsh desert which drives them to the brink and the latter stages which involve some famous Asian landmarks.
For the most part it is absorbing and features well drawn characters, even though it occasionally suffers from the problem of mixing English and native dialogue, which in the modern era diminishes the overall authenticity of the film.
The film hinges on the central character’s desire to get back home (hence the title) to see his wife, which we see in a recurring vision, and it is hard not to be moved by the climactic depiction of the personal set against the historical.
But although The Way Back is an undeniably powerful experience, there is a problem at the very heart of the adaptation which directly relates to the original book that inspired it.
Although Rawicz’s account was acclaimed for a number of years, in 2006 the BBC discovered records that essentially debunked his version of events, even though there is evidence to suggest that the journey may have been undertaken by other people.
Peter Weir was fully aware of the controversy surrounding the book when he made the film, hence certain key changes, and overall it demonstrates the taste, tact and intelligence that has informed his career.
But given the extraordinary nature of the journey there is something dispiriting about finding out the truth about Rawicz, even if the actual trek may have been done by someone else.
It remains a powerful and handsomely constructed piece of cinema but also suffers from the shady origins of its source material.
As usual these are my favourite films of the year in alphabetical order (just click on each title for more information).
THE BEST FILMS OF 2010
Animal Kingdom (Dir. David Michôd): The outstanding debut feature from director David Michôd is a riveting depiction of a Melbourne crime family headed by a sinister matriarch.
Another Year (Dir. Mike Leigh): A moving, bitter-sweet drama about relationships, filled with great acting, is arguably the peak of Mike Leigh’s career.
Biutiful (Dir. Alejandro González Iñárritu): Searing exploration of life and death in a modern European city, featuring a tremendous central performance from Javier Bardem.
Black Swan (Dir. Darren Aronofsky): Swan Lake is retold with glorious intensity, channelling Polanski and Cronenberg whilst giving Natalie Portman the role of a lifetime.
Carlos (Dir. Olivier Assayas): Scintillating and immersive depiction of a 1970s terrorist with a tremendous performance by Edgar Ramirez.
Enter the Void (Dir. Gaspar Noé): Technically dazzling depiction of a dead drug dealer that also features what is possibly the greatest opening title sequence of all time.
Exit Through The Gift Shop (Dir. Banksy): An ingenious and hilarious hall of mirrors which is brilliantly executed and so much more than a ‘Banksy documentary’.
Inception (Dir. Christopher Nolan): The ingenious puzzles of Christopher Nolan’s early films were given the scale of his blockbusters in this hugely ambitious sci-fi actioner.
Inside Job (Dir. Charles Ferguson): Devastating documentary about the financial crisis which plays like a heist movie, only this time it is the banks robbing the people.
Tabloid (Dir. Errol Morris): The media feeding frenzy surrounding a bizarre 1970s sex scandal provided Errol Morris with the raw material for one of the most entertaining documentaries in years.
The Fighter (Dir. David O’Russell): A boxing story which follows a familiar path but remains energetic, inspirational and funny, with Christian Bale on career-best form.
The Kids Are Alright (Dir. Lisa Cholodenko): A perfectly pitched comedy-drama that explores modern family life with genuine heart and humour.
The King’s Speech (Dir. Tom Hooper): Wonderfully crafted period drama with two brilliant lead performances and a moving story filled with hilarious one liners.
The Social Network (Dir. David Fincher): The inside story of Facebook is a riveting tale of ambition and betrayal, which sees Fincher, Sorkin and a young cast firing on all cylinders.
Toy Story 3 (Dir. Lee Unkrich): The ground breaking animated series gets a worthy final chapter whilst maintaining Pixar’s impeccable standards of story and animation.
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
127 Hours (Dir. Danny Boyle) Blue Valentine (Dir. Derek Cianfrance) Catfish (Dir. Ariel Schulman and Henry Joost) Four Lions (Dir. Chris Morris) Let Me In (Dir. Matt Reeves) Restrepo (Dir. Tim Hetherington and Sebastian Junger) Somewhere (Dir. Sofia Coppola) The American (Dir. Anton Corbijn) The Ghost Writer (Dir. Roman Polanski) The Illusionist (Dir. Sylvain Chomet) Winter’s Bone (Dir. Debra Granik)
Soundworks have released a video detailing how the sounds of Black Swan were achieved.
Craig Henighan has worked with director Darren Aronofsky since Requiem For A Dream (2000) and his work on this film (as sound designer, supervising sound editor and sound re-recording mixer) is a key element of why it works so well.
Fox Searchlight have released a new video for Black Swan detailing the production design by Thérèse DePrez.
She and director Darren Aronofsky discuss their ideas behind the look of the Swan Lake set, the colour palette and the extensive use of mirrors in the film.
Some Oscar pundits have felt that Black Swan is too dark a film to get widespread Oscar recognition, but although more conservative viewers may be put off by the wilder aspects, it deserves to be a strong contender across multiple categories.
Not only is Natalie Portman now gaining serious traction for Best Actress, but the sheer quality of the technical aspects (cinematography, costume and production design) may well give it a boost as audiences in the US finally get to see it.
Plus, in recent years haven’t Academy voters increasingly gone for darker and more contemporary films such as The Hurt Locker, No Country for Old Men and The Departed?
Darren Aronofsky’s portrait of an obsessive ballerina is wonderfully intense experience, powered by a standout performance from Natalie Portman.
Set amongst a New York City ballet company producing Swan Lake, it focuses on the psychological and physical tribulations of Nina (Portman), a dancer desperate to impress her demanding director (Vincent Cassel) and possessive mother (Barbara Hershey).
After she wins the lead role we see Nina’s ambition and drive turn into something much darker.
She begins to have suspicions about her predecessor (Winona Ryder), a fellow dancer (Mila Kunis) and herself as she becomes burdened with all kinds of psychological and physical problems.
Incorporating a variety of influences that include The Red Shoes, Repulsion and David Cronenberg, it also riffs heavily on the raw source material of Swan Lake itself.
Tchaikovsky’s original work is given a modern day twist, as the trials of a young princess turned into a swan by an evil sorcerer get unsettling and often surprising parallels.
At one point Cassel’s director says of his staging of Swan Lake:
“It’s been done to death, I know, but not like this. We’re going to strip it down and make it visceral and real”
This might also be Aronofsky talking, as that is exactly what he does with Black Swan.
Clint Mansell’s score also emphasises this, expanding on Tchaikovsky’s original compositions but taking it to a more sinister place, which, allied with some highly effective sound design, makes for an arresting audio backdrop.
Intriguing parallels with The Wrestler abound: both examine the physical and mental costs of being a performer; show the pressures of ageing; feature a character’s desire to connect; and climax with a grand flourish.
Black Swan goes further in cranking up the tension and, along with a paranoid, unreliable narrator, there is an unusual amount of visual effects shots that depict the crumbling reality of Nina’s world.
Mirrors are a recurring motif throughout and shots in rehearsal rooms are designed so we don’t see the reflected cameras; people and body parts morph in creepy ways; and a variety of subtle effects are used to make us question what we have just seen.
Part of what gives the film such an exhilarating kick is Matthew Libatique’s handheld visuals, shot on grainy 16mm. Like in The Wrestler, his work has a fluid urgency which really pays off in the dance sequences and also the claustrophobic world of Nina’s apartment.
But the heart of Black Swan is Natalie Portman’s captivating central performance. In what is easily the best part of her career, she conveys a believable kaleidoscope of emotions – including fear, aggression and pain – in a relentless push for artistic perfection.
Performing well outside of her comfort zone as an actress, her work has a certain meta quality that reflects the journey of her character, although we can safely assume the actual film production wasn’t as gruelling as the fictional ballet.
In supporting roles, Vincent Cassell is brilliantly arrogant as the manipulative director; Mila Kunis is a charming foil; Barbara Hershey conveys a suffocating and vicarious ambition, and Winona Ryder has a small but juicy role as a fading star.
Since establishing himself in the independent sphere with films such as Pi (1998) and Requiem For A Dream (2000), Aronofsky has carved out an impressive niche for himself with thoughtfully crafted character portraits that have included mathematicians, drug dealers and wrestlers.
Black Swan is probably his most daring film yet: the bold mix of genres, combined with a dark sensibility may put off some audiences, but is also a reminder of how rich and rewarding his work can be.
Black Swan played at the London Film Festival today and screens on Sunday 24th and Monday 25th.
Fox Searchlight have released the first full length trailer for Black Swan, the new film from director Darren Aronofsky about two ballet dancers (Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis) in a New York production of Swan Lake.
It opens the Venice Film Festival later this month and is likely to be an awards season contender.
