Last weekend we went to see the Academy Award nominated film, Black Swan.

I had heard it was maybe a little scary and disturbing so I was ready for just about anything and glad that I’d been given a heads up before hand.

The film catches you from the beginning with the relationship between a grown daughter (though you’re not sure at first how old she is) and doting mother that sets an important tone. The director, Darren Aronofsky, often shows Nina, played by Natalie Portman, from just behind the nape of her neck as she walks briskly from place to place in a nervous patter like a bird.

Without going into all the details, Black Swan is really an exercise in watching someone go insane. The viewer isn’t sure what’s real anymore by the end of the film which of course makes us think that much harder about what we’ve seen.

It’s a very clever, disturbing and sad story brought to life so visually by a well cast Barbara Hershey,  Winona Ryder, Mila Kunis and Natalie Portman.  Ms. Portman is  the absolute front runner for an Academy Award for this performance. She was stunning. You would know what’s happening to her character even if this had been a silent movie.