10 Best Indie Horror Movies Of All Time
6. Black Swan
Darren Aronofsky has a thing for tales of obsession. Requiem For A Dream turns addiction into melodrama, and The Wrestler is the tragic story of a man chasing his glory days. In Black Swan, he revisits similar themes, only this time through the lens of full fledged body horror.
Natalie Portman won an Oscar for her portrayal of Nina Sayers, a dancer looking to step up in her career. She auditions for the titular ballet, but finds the dual role a challenge - while she excels as the white swan, the alternate persona proves to be beyond her grasp. There follows a decline into madness as Nina embraces the darkness within to properly pull off the performance.
It’s a film about sacrifice - what a dancer must do to their body in order to perform at their peak, and the sense of self Nina must give up to transform herself into the black swan.
The tricky narrative and typically flash presentation throws doubt on the reality of the story - is Nina at the core of a sinister plot, or is she simply losing her grip on sanity?