Black Swan: A Review

Perfection. A desire to be the best, yet it can be a jealously which controls.

Darren Aronofsky's psychological depiction of Nina - a ballerina selected for the role of Swan Queen - is mesmerizing and terrifying as his portrayal of Nina's obsession for perfection sees her delve into the realm of madness. She embodies the role of the graceful yet delicate White Swan but must learn to play the part of the sensual and passionate Black Swan. A perfectionist, Nina struggles to impress as the Black Swan, a role which requires the ballerina to be imperfect in order to portray the character. This is where Nina's blinding desire, coupled with a lubricious instructor and a rising co-star, leads her to destructive mind games which threaten to derail her dreams.
I won't spoil the plot, but I must point out some of the symbols used by the director.
Colors: There is a huge contrast in Nina's dressing throughout the film. She starts off in bright colors, often either white or some bright hue. However as Nina slowly embodies the role of the Black Swan, her dressing becomes darker, with the white transitioning to grey and eventually becoming black.
Sensuality: Nina is initially portrayed as mild and timid - ideal for the role of the White Swan. However, her role as the Black Swan demands more of her, and she is forced to find sexuality in order to fulfill her desire for perfection. Many will find the scenes inappropriate for audiences, in which they are right, but more mature viewers must understand the role which sensuality plays in order to understand the movie.
Mirrors: The inclusion of mirrors in most major scenes is a allusion to the *SPOILER*duality of Nina's mind.*SPOILER* Her perceptions from the mirror are not always what happens in reality, and the audience is kept guessing at which is which - a hard thing to do since ballerinas practice and perceive their act and movements through the use of mirrors.

Black Swan delves into the psychological state of an artist desiring to be ideal for a role in which she must undergo extreme metamorphosis. Question is...is perfection worth it?

programming

I've been learning HTML, Javascript etc, and this is the start of many good things to come.

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Reblogging

To all those who have been following me, I'm sorry for the lack of posts.

Be ensured there will be more in the next couple of weeks


Nick

One Year Done

Hey Family and Friends, Guys and Gals

Well....I am done with my first year of college. It was one that flew past by much faster than I would have liked and there's so much that happened this past two semesters that I wish I could have embraced each individual moment at the time it occured. So much for wishing. Anyway....quick recap of this year.

Highlights of my year

1. International and First-Year Orientation

- These events were the bomb. I had so much fun during the first two weeks of college and wish I could do it all over again Those were the times where I could hang out with newly-made friends and not care about school. I met people who are now my best friends and there were a ton of memories to be kept from the events (although I did not enjoy sitting in Hitchcock listening to dumb talks, but even fun times were created from those moments)

2. Classes

- I know, I know...this is the nerdy (the dominant) part of me talking but I really enjoyed being challenged this year. From taking 18 credits in the fall to taking Animal Form and Function (the nightmarish but fun (paradoxical) J-term class), I was constantly being pushed to learn more each day. Like a wise man once said, learning is a lifetime journey, so has my first academic year. I am grateful to be blessed with excellent professors, who are both wonderful instructors and friends. My science classes were a lot of fun, especially Animal Form and Function, and I believe that I have found what I want to do for the rest of my life. Like another wise man said, "you don't succeed completely until you love what you do".

3. Friends

- This year has been a great time of fellowship and developement of relationships with members of both sexes. With the guys on my floor, I have become close to some of them and I know the rest more or less as acquaintances (not as if that is a bad thing.) I have become especially close to one of my roommate (Johnny boy) and although he has been a bum many a time and had many uncertainties over his future, he has been a great encouragment and a blessing. I hope he goes where God leads him to, but I would love to have him stay at Messiah as my roomie. I have also become really close to Ha Ram, an International Missionary Kid from Korea but residing in Indonesia. I have been really blessed by his presence in my life and I appreciate every moment I get to spend with him. He has become a brother to me and I would like to see what God has in store for his life. Joel Love has also become a good friend, more recent than earlier and mainly because of calculus class. Although he is living in Miller next year (noobsauce), I know we can hang out just as much as we have when on the same floor. Finally, but not the lease, the Family has become a dear part of my experience at Messiah. I appreciate the friendship of the guys and gals in the group and I wish I could have spent more time with them sometimes, but I guess studies have to become a priority. However, I hope next year I will have more time to spend with them as they are the most magnificent group of people ever (other than my real family that is).

4. Maturity

- It wouldn't be a proper note if I did not end with this topic. I believe God has placed me in different siutations and environments this year so as to teach me to grow in Him. Some days I will feel as if I have no strength or willpower to move on, but when I sit in quiet reflection of His presence, I have been renewed daily. Furthermore, I appreciate the discussion about faith that I have had with my friends. These are the moments where we can have heart-to-heart talks concerning things that truly matter. There are a ton of more things I could talk about, but they all have culminated in a single thing - growth. I entered college as a brash, arrogant, and ignorant high school graduate, and after a year, I return more mellow and tolerant, desiring to grow and become more like Christ each day.

To sum it all up, my first year of college has been a great experience and I can't wait to see what God has in plan for me for the next three years and the years beyond Messiah.