Ballet as a Bloodsport

BLACK SWAN

Darren Aronofsky, 2010

Got a secret

Can you keep it?

Swear this one you'll save

Better lock it in your pocket

Taking this one to the grave

If I show you then I know you won't tell what I said

'Cause two can keep a secret if one of them is dead

- The Pierces, Secret

How far are you willing to go for the sake of absolute perfection? For Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman), as far as it takes.

In Black Swan, ambitious ballerina Nina Sayers is tapped to star in the new production of Swan Lake, which is being helmed by the company's flirty director, Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassel). As the production approaches its first show, Nina finds her life resembling that of the two main characters in Swan Lake: the Swan Queen and her wicked twin, the Black Swan.

Dismantling the Stereotype

SETTLE DOWN
Guy Franklin, 2010

And in celebration of Women's Month, here's my take on Kimbra's feminist song, Settle Down. Kimbra, in my opinion, is kinda like the sober and sane version of Lady Gaga. Born in New Zealand, this underrated singer is mainly popular in Australia, focusing more on her music as an art, not as a means of worldwide fame.

I happened upon one of her songs, Settle Down, when its video was used as a promo for a music festival here in the Philippines, in which Kimbra is the main performer.

Settle Down has a sardonic undertone in it, implicitly saying that not all women want to get married, at the same time dismantling the stereotypical notion of "a lady housewife."