Black Swan and Purity

Last updated on: August 16, 2022 at 1:58 pm by Zachary Miller

Black Swan and Purity 2022-08-16T13:58:32-06:00 Zachary Miller

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Fox Searchlight Pictures via “Den of Geek”

I grew up in a household that did not watch R-rated films.

This practice, while not an explicit decree, did stem in large part from the expectations of our faith. Part of keeping one’s self pure meant not intaking media that offended the holy spirit. For many of my faith (though I dare not estimate exactly how many), an R-rating signals a film unacceptable. I adhered to this guideline all the way through my early years of college.

I came to a roadblock when I first felt the pull to study film formally. It became clear that I couldn’t just avoid 57% of all films. When push came to shove, I chose to try to walk the line and engage with R-rated films while still holding on to my faith. Thus far, I’ve managed to do fine. But there’s still a lurking insecurity when I’m sitting through something like Darren Arronofsky’s 2010 film, Black Swan.

The film follows Nina (played by Natalie Portman in her Oscar-winning role), a wide-eyed ballerina whose plie breaks your heart with its unassuming fragility. After years in the ensemble, Nina finally gets the opportunity to headline her company’s upcoming “Swan Lake” performance. But there’s a caveat. The lead performer dances both the innocent White Swan and the seductive Black Swan. The White Swan comes naturally to Nina, but she simply lacks the inner darkness to convincingly play her malevolent counterpart.

Desperate to not lose her chance, Nina chases her inner darkness obsessively, even trying to create it when necessary. This internal metamorphosis takes its toll on Nina’s psyche as she becomes more mentally unhinged, even hallucinating. When opening night comes, Nina gives the performance of a lifetime. Literally, she performs through a life-threatening injury. As the applause roars, Nina muses about how she finally gave a perfect performance as she blacks out and presumably dies.

Fox Searchlight Pictures via “Harvard Magazine”

“Black Swan” is exactly the kind of film that would have been blocked to me once upon a time. Nina accesses her inner darkness by subjecting herself to the very things that once upon a time made a film beyond consideration: explicit language, violent imagery, and overtly sexual material. And so the film strikes a unique nerve for me. As I behold the delicate craftsmanship of the film, I see myself in Nina mutilating her soul in the name of perfection. I can’t help but wonder whether this betrayal of my old standards is poisoning my own psyche, like I’m on stage with Nina as my life force slowly bleeds out. Watching R-rated films hasn’t cost me my faith yet, but Nina also didn’t notice the glass shard in her abdomen until it’s too late.

Living in a fallen world is dangerous for the heaven-bound individual. In order to engage with it, we have to acknowledge our own inner darkness. No one can hold onto their innocence for long in this world. Accepting that much is easy, but can we catch ourselves before our darkness eats us from the inside?

Fox Searchlight Pictures via “Thrillist”

General Christian

Previous Post

July 3, 2021

The Woodsman and the Depths of The Atonement

Next Post

July 10, 2021 The Little Mermaid and Faith

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Action Movies Animated Christ Classical Film Divinity Faith Finding God Goodness Happiness Heaven Horror Films International Film Judging Love Ministering Mortality Movies Musicals Religion Repentence Rom-Coms Sin Trials Truth TV Shows Uncategorized Valiance Worth

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 March 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 October 2023 August 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

How many daughters did Job have after his restoration?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Two Seven Five Three