The movie opens with white writing on a black
background for the credits. There is classical music playing in the background. The music is quite
creepy and goes to loud to quiet and is arrhythmic. This introduces us to the
genre as thriller and the black and white is simple and clean, but also matches
the title Black Swan which is oxymoronic. The black and white colours could also be a refence to the genre as lots of Thriller films use black and white.
It then fades to Natalie Portman who is standing center stage with low key light which creates shadows and suggests an eeriness.
Her being in the center of the shot means that we knows she is important and
introduces us to her as a central character. The film is also showcasing her, her being the first thing you see allows the audience to connect with her early on in the film. It also means it is obvious who the film is about, and when we later see her wake up from her dream, we know it was her who we just saw dancing.
The camera then focuses on her ballet shoes and
we watch her delicately dance,the low key lighting again juxtaposes something
that is delicate and pretty to suggest something dark and hidden.
The music intensifies and becomes more random
when the second character appears. He is wearing black and contrasts with the
swan. The colors connote purity and delicacy for white and evil and corrupted for
black.
The camera also pans round her and the male
dancer quite quickly to match with the increased pace of the movie.
The camera movement in the opening sequence changes from a smooth tracking of Portman as she dances to handheld and more shaky when the male character is introduced, this matches the characters as she is dancing as a white swan, which is pretty and delicate, while he is meant to be evil. The handheld style gives the impression we are watching her and preying on her.
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