tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post2928831477414383294..comments2022-03-24T16:11:50.124-04:00Comments on The Man From Porlock: Tongue-Tied, Bird-Brained (The King's Speech and Black Swan)Craighttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-13717798249011586302011-01-07T18:46:47.119-05:002011-01-07T18:46:47.119-05:00Thanks, Jeremy. I know what you mean about Portman...Thanks, Jeremy. I know what you mean about Portman. She's a limited performer playing a limited performer in a role that will win her the kind of awards oft bestowed on mediocrity. And the circle of life continues. Still, I can't help but feel that a more accomplished actress may have offered some compelling nuances. The whole thing would have been dead without Mila Kunis onscreen.Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-91848838259950402082011-01-07T16:01:05.735-05:002011-01-07T16:01:05.735-05:00I liked "Black Swan" a good deal more th...I liked "Black Swan" a good deal more than you did but not quite as much as everyone else. A second viewing would further sort things out for me but I definitely see where you're coming from on all fronts. The whole thing is kind of ridiculous, whether that was the intention or not, or whether Aronofsky's intentions even matter or not... who knows. <br /><br />I like that you brought up Portman being too old for the part (she is) but I do think this was the first role since "The Professional" that she actually seemed right for, which probably isn't a compliment. Physical training aside, it was totally in her comfort zone emotionally (to me she's always come across as so cold and detached as an actress). Technically an Oscar worthy performance, but I still don't think she's a great actress if that makes any sense at all.jeremythecritichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09351653201416397407noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-55002583168337060122011-01-03T10:01:35.572-05:002011-01-03T10:01:35.572-05:00Thanks, Adam. I should be clear that I didn't ...Thanks, Adam. I should be clear that I didn't hate the movie; it's too laughable for that. On its own primal terms, I guess <i>Black Swan</i> works; though I thought it was too absurd to work as tragedy and used Portman too much as a punching bag to be a comedy.<br /><br />Based on <i>The King's Speech</i>, Tom Hooper appears to have recently learned how to remove the camera lens cap. Next lesson: canted angles.Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-9639877102663926052011-01-02T23:36:07.241-05:002011-01-02T23:36:07.241-05:00While I do share Jason/Kevin/Steven's Black Sw...While I do share Jason/Kevin/Steven's <i>Black Swan</i> appreciation I gotta say that your criticisms of it here were priceless. I do agree with you that the movie might have been a full-fledged masterpiece in the hands of somebody like De Palma, but at the same time I'm not sure De Palma would have been comfortable directing a screenplay this... <i>clean</i>. I know, I know: how is a movie with lesbian sex/cutting/intense gore clean? But as much as I loved this movie, I didn't think it was very radical material--although I was mostly impressed with Aronofsky's visual style. Your bit here in reference to Portman's <i>Attack of the Clones</i> days made me laugh out loud.<br /><br />I don't know if I want to see <i>The King's Speech</i> or not. For one thing, I don't even know who Tom Hooper is!Adam Zanziehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14524618281515322239noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-50987335744752085272011-01-02T22:59:14.976-05:002011-01-02T22:59:14.976-05:00Yes, it appears I'm in a minority here. That&#...Yes, it appears I'm in a minority here. That's okay. Good to hear from you guys.<br /><br /><a href="http://coolercinema.blogspot.com/2011/01/bests-of-2010.html?showComment=1293996915622#c3732515441258126832" rel="nofollow">"Jaon"</a>:<br /><br /><i>I think its major mistake is that Hitler scene -- because it's great, but it doesn't belong to that movie.</i><br /><br />An interesting point I hadn't considered -- that a great scene can expose the weaknesses of the rest of the film. I didn't think much of the movie up to that moment, so for me it was a highlight.<br /><br />Kevin:<br /><br /><i>In fact, Black Swan reminded me of my theater experience seeing Magnolia in that the audience laughed a lot because they didn't know what to think about what was unfolding in front of them.</i><br /><br />I find PTA movies a fascinating experience with audiences, because he has a knack for pissing them off. In other words, the laughter is hostile. I didn't really detect that with <i>Black Swan</i>; it's so risible it practically gooses the audience into a response.<br /><br />Steven:<br /><br /><i>As far as showing the love of the dance, I have to admit that I am of two minds about this. Yes, there is beauty in ballet, but, at the same time, it is quite a pompous art that some of us can't quite take seriously,</i><br /><br />Absolutely. I wonder, though, how things would have played had Aronofsky embraced (or pretended to embrace) that pomposity at the start, only to let it gradually unravel. I wonder if the horror would have had more impact, had less the feel of a parlor game being played on the audience (one I found pretty trite in its retrograde attitudes and shock tactics).Craighttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01450775188328918558noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-65771130263070607892011-01-02T19:05:46.740-05:002011-01-02T19:05:46.740-05:00Craig,
I'm with Jason on "Black Swan&qu...Craig, <br /><br />I'm with Jason on "Black Swan" and I also believe it was intended to be funny. As for as telegraphing the main character's insanity, I thought the intention was Aronofsky fully clued you in that we were watching a mental breakdown. It's a movie where every given moment is clearly unreliable in terms of whether it happened or not, even by the end. <br /><br />On the other hand, "Shutter Island" is incredibly unimaginative in giving us a definitive answer and psychoanalysis of its main character, while simultaneously revealing a twist ending that was beyond ludicrous. I actually found "Black Swan" fascinating in how throws so many absurd, but not necessarily unrealistic hang-ups about sex up on the screen and leaves it for us to figure out on our own.<br /><br />As far as showing the love of the dance, I have to admit that I am of two minds about this. Yes, there is beauty in ballet, but, at the same time, it is quite a pompous art that some of us can't quite take seriously, the high brow companion to the wrestling in Aronofsky's previous film. Also, did Nina necessarily love dance or was forced into it by her mother? People do strive for perfection in work they don't love because they accept their lot in life.<br /><br />As far as "The King's Speech", at this point, I'm not sure I could ever see it without thinking about Michael Palin's Roman governor with the speech impediment in "Life of Brian".Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05571206086671634525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-28526062833767498742011-01-02T18:53:59.375-05:002011-01-02T18:53:59.375-05:00Great stuff, Craig. I'm with Jason, too, on th...Great stuff, Craig. I'm with Jason, too, on thinking <i>Black Swan</i> is one of the best films of the year (maybe the best...I still find myself thinking about it daily). I like what Jason says in that it's over the top and sloppy. I mentioned that I love how Aronofsky just rushed headlong through the film without a care for how silly the whole thing might seem. That kind of energy is sorely lacking in movies these days. I liken it to a messy version of something Paul Thomas Anderson would do. There are all sorts of nits to pick about the Daniel Plainview character, but I didn't care because the energy of that film got me through the overwrought, operatic (something PTA does extremely well, mind you, and in a more formalized and aesthetically pleasing way than Aronofsky) moments of that film. <br /><br />In fact, <i>Black Swan</i> reminded me of my theater experience seeing <i>Magnolia</i> in that the audience laughed a lot because they didn't know what to think about what was unfolding in front of them.Kevin J. Olsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17275402809912728035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3211112229982829419.post-85966801233879359782011-01-02T18:29:31.073-05:002011-01-02T18:29:31.073-05:00Entertaining reviews. Loved the Black Swan images!...Entertaining reviews. Loved the <em>Black Swan</em> images! Hilarious!<br /><br />As for <em>Black Swan</em> itself ... yes, it's camp that I take seriously. That is, the effect for me is real. It's my top film of the year -- in part because it's wild and sloppy and over the top.<br /><br />As for <em>The King's Speech</em> ... yes, it's Oscar bait alright. But damn if it doesn't hit the notes. I think its major mistake is that Hitler scene -- because it's great, but it doesn't belong to that movie. <em>The King's Speech</em> works well as a personal tale -- a story that is about a king but that could be about anyone. It could have been something else, something grander, something that really digs its teeth into those things it gives the flyby (like about how radio has changed the responsibilities of the crown), but it isn't. And so that Hitler moment reminds of what the movie might have been. Without more scenes like that one, it shouldn't be there.Jason Bellamyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18150199580478147196noreply@blogger.com