3. The story is about Nina - a dedicated ballerina who is quietly desperate for the part of the
Swan Queen in her company's up-coming re-imagining of Swan Lake. When she bites the
Artistic Director of the company in response to his advances, he sees in her the fire that is
necessary to also play the role of the Black Swan. But when Nina is befriended by the
company newcomer - and natural candidate for the Black Swan - Lilly, she becomes involved
in increasingly rebellious, sexual and aggressive behaviour. As opening night
approaches, Nina finds her inner Black Swan is out of control and her grasp on reality
increasingly fragile.
4. In terms of the issue of the self-harm seen in the film, BBFC Guidelines at 15 note ‘Dangerous
behaviour (for example, ... self-harming) should not dwell on detail which could be copied’. Such
scenes in Black Swan were judged sufficiently aversive in nature and therefore unlikely to
encourage copying or promotion of such behaviour.
The issue of drug misuse also occurs in Black Swan. In a bar, Nina is encouraged by Lily to drink a
spiked drink in order to relax. Nina takes the drink fully aware that it has been drugged.
It was judged that Black Swan, both in this scene and overall, did not promote or encourage
drug taking.
The scene has a precautionary aspect and could act as a valuable warning to the 15 -17 year old
age group to not take risks, and to always be vigilant. It was also recognised that the 15 -17 age
group would be increasingly familiar with the issue of spiked drinks following recent ad
campaigns and the subject's appearance in TV programmes such as Hollyoaks.
The stand out classification issue in Black Swan is that of sex. There are several 'sex' scenes in
the film. BBFC Guidelines at 15 note that ‘Sexual activity may be portrayed without strong
detail’
These sequences were considered to lack the ‘strong detail’ to take them beyond 15 and the issue
of masturbation would not be unfamiliar to most 15 year olds. However, one scene in particular
took Black Swan right to the 15 / 18 classification border:
5. Black Swan was passed at the same category
for its DVD release, and was selected for the
2011 Schools’ Film Week.
