2011 Movie Count: 2

Friday night I watched Orlando, to see if it was suitable to show in my class. I thought it was a beautiful movie. Sally Potter created some amazing shots, with intriguing angles and visual connections between themes. The music was moving and effective. The casting was good, but Tilda Swinton should not have been wearing make-up as the male Orlando. it would have made her more compelling if her skin weren't flawless. The second half of the movie was spot-on for a discussion about how gender changes us, but the first half moved so slowly that I decided against using it. I can't expect the average 18-year-old to sit through that, wondering where the story is going and why s/he's watching it. Orlando, of course, is an adaptation of Virginia Woolf's novel about a man cursed with eternal youth who mysteriously becomes a woman. I haven't read the book, so I can't speak to its integrity to the original. I found myself a little annoyed at the stereotyping. Even while the movie was claiming that it makes no difference what sex a person is, that the essence of a person is unchanged, we see that Orlando was transformed into a woman because he refused the role of a proper man (killing), while his counterpart Shel refused to have children and live a life of sacrifice, and so she became a man.  Woolf advocated androgyny as a step toward a future of gender freedom, but she was also chained by societal expectations.

Today my husband and I saw Black Swan at our local art cinema (though it's also on at the megaplex). What an intense movie! At first I was completely unimpressed by Natalie Portman's acting. Just the same old helpless lost look, I thought. But in the second half all that changed and I really was impressed. Mila Kunis also did a great job; she's really grown up since That 70s Show. I also liked Winona Ryder as the aging dancer that Natalie's character Nina was replacing. Nina is cast as the Swan Queen and also as the Black Swan in a new ballet production. She's combating the stress of satisfying the director as well as the jealousy of competition, which turns dark indeed. The visuals were not as compelling as I had hoped, but the music was flawless and the directing superb. I should also mention the make-up, which was striking.