I went into this movie expecting something between Robert Altman's The Company and Bob Fosse's All That Jazz. Not having read much about this movie, clearly I was headed in the wrong direction in my expectations.

Natalie Portman's portrayal of Nina, a hard-working, but very breakable professional ballerina, is both mesmerizing and hard to watch. Her strength while in her slippers and leotard is undeniable, yet she also seems ready to crack down the middle at any moment.

I was attracted to this film by the promise of dance, and it certainly did deliver in dance scenes. However, the thrust of the film centered on Nina's character struggling to find her inner black swan in order to play the part of both white and black swan in a production of Swan Lake. Her search, and ultimate transition brought to mind Jacob's Ladder in its quality of shadows and demons.

Barbara Hershey plays Nina's overbearing mother. There was something about her character that reminded me of Nurse Ratched. Perhaps it was the carefully controlled sadism of a former dancer mixed with the constant possibility of a burst of rage at the slightest prompting.

I was disappointed that Winona Ryder was in few scenes. But Mila Kunis made up for it with a wonderful performance as the real Black Swan (complete with feathers tattooed across her shoulder blades), the bad girl to Nina's little miss perfect.

Nina's journey into her shadow self was exotic, erotic and disturbing to witness. Portman was brilliant in creating this creature so haunted by her own repressed desires that she splits into two from the pressure within and without. I can't say I walked away from this film feeling good, but I was most certainly impressed by the performances and the tenacity of its makers.

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