Black Swan - S14 E112
About this episode
The episode dives into Darren Aronofsky's film Black Swan, exploring themes of identity, self-destruction, and artistic perfection.
It’s time to swan-dive into the sixth episode of our Identity season. This week, Dan has chosen to subject us to the dark, grainy and deeply uncomfortable world of Darren Aronofsky’s 2010 psychodrama, Black Swan. After surviving Requiem for a Dream during our season of films about drugs, we’re back for a second helping of Aronofsky-flavoured self-destruction. We’re talking Natalie Portman in possibly, her career-best role as Nina, a ballerina on a quest for artistic perfection that makes the guy from Whiplash look like a hobbyist. We’ve got Mila Kunis as the seductive Lily, Vincent Cassel playing his creepy Frenchman archetype, Barbara Hershey putting the mother in smother and Winona Ryder who thought she was signing up for a Face/Off sequel. What to expect from this episode: Dan explains why he chose a ballet movie for a season about identity despite usually only watching films about disenfranchised men. A deep dive into why Darren Aronofsky is the undisputed king of making his protagonists suffer for their art. Making connections with Aronofsky’s filmography between self-destruction, loss of innocence and duality. Sarah shares her genuine physical trauma regarding the…
People in this episode
Host: Dan
Topics covered
- psychodrama
- identity
- artistic perfection
- self-destruction
- body horror
- film analysis
Keywords
- Black Swan
- Darren Aronofsky
- Natalie Portman
- psychodrama
- body horror
- film analysis
- identity
- self-destruction
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Black Swan, Requiem for a Dream, The Wrestler, Whiplash
More episodes of Shoot The Hostage
- Season Fourteen Wrap Show Preview
- Total Recall - S14 E114
- American Psycho - S14 E113
- Friendship (2024) - S14 E111
- The Substance - S14 E110
- Dressed to Kill - S14 E109
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Shoot The Hostage podcast page.