Black Swan (2010), a psychologically perplexing film directed by Darren Aronofsky, exhibits an intelligent use of Mise en Scène, specifically in one of its last scenes. Portrayed by Natalie Portman, Nina Sayers is a dedicated ballet dancer who catapults herself into self-sabotage as a result of her obsession to be perfect. Despite Nina’s effortless capability of being the white swan, she struggles to achieve the characteristics of the black swan. Throughout the course of the film, Nina’s character makes both physical and emotional transitions, which are achieved carefully by the use of lighting and costume and makeup, as facets of Mise en Scène.
The entirety of the last scene of the film illustrates what I consider to be a profound example of Mise en Scène. It is important to note that the lighting used in this film, particularly in this scene, play a pivotal role in the color. For example, in this still image, Nina has actually just finished her dance as the black swan while wearing a black costume. The way the lighting is cast on her, or the direction from which it comes from in this particular still frame, make it appear as though she is wearing a white costume. The bright lights that line the stage she is dancing on clearly contribute to the backlighting in this shot, just as the strong spotlights placed above her provide top lighting. It is reasonable to say that back lighting serves as the key light because the viewer can clearly see where it is coming from within the frame, especially because it casts dark shadows on the right wing of her costume and her left leg. With that said, the top lighting serves as the fill light because it softens the shadows cast by the key light in front of her. Not to mention, the hard quality of the top lighting accentuates the shape of the wings in her costume, and within the highlights on her face, where the sharp edges of her chin and jaw are prominent.
Ultimately, what makes the Mise en Scène in this shot so strong is how the lighting manipulates the colors of Nina’s costume. This creative decision to use top lighting and back lighting give the illusion that Nina could never truly surrender herself to becoming the black swan, because regardless of her efforts, she will always appear white, and therefore, pure. This obsession to be perfect ultimately lead to her death at the end of her performance.
Despite the lighting’s contribution to the overall Mise en Scène in this still image, Nina’s character stands out because of the costume she is wearing. Her transformation from the white swan to black swan is made evident by not only her dancing, but her appearance. Nina’s costume in this image holds a specific function within the narrative of the film, adding to the idea that her obsession with becoming perfect has destroyed her. As a result, she has grown a pair of wings through her skin while dancing the black swan, which were not initially a part of her costume. Though all of the physical changes she endures are hallucinations and the audience doesn’t witness the change in her costume, the supposed black wings in this frame serve as a symbol that Nina has succumbed to the painful, demonic ugliness of the black swan, officially allowing her obsession with perfection to kill her. Nina never really embodied the black swan; she let it consume her. In other words, the wings of the costume play a causal role in Nina’s suicide.
Given these points, the Mise en Scène in this image implements very clever uses of lighting and costume and makeup to convey the painful dynamism of Nina’s psyche.
Image sourced from: https://www.artofvfx.com/black-swan-xx-superviseur-vfx-look-effects/