'Black Swan" dance double attacks Natalie Portman's dancing

A claim by Natalie Portman's ballet double Sarah Lane from the movie Black Swan alleges that the Oscar-winning actress did not perform the majority of the film's dance sequences has quickly been challenged by Portman's fiance and Black Swan choreographer Benjamin Millepied who says Natalie did "85%" of the dancing in the movie

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• ballet
• natalie portman
• black swan
• sarah lane
• benjamin millepied
• controversy
• dance double
• showbiz
• hollywood actor
• crazy hollywood
• sneak peak
• 85%
• 5%
• full body shots
• pointe work
• foutee
• black swan turn sequence
• diagonal
• turns on diagonal
• actress

[Lirit331]

Really, who cares? The dancing in the movie was sublime, and body doubles in dance movies rarely get more than a nod in the credits anyway. Sarah Lane was listed twice in the credits, and was paid well for her work. Lane is just trying to drag out her 15 minutes.

[rosalierox247]

I just noticed the four swan music in the background lol i just did that variation last night

[MrKLT1945]

@anditspaganpoetry 100% Correct! Add to that full-time prof. ballet training from the age of 10/11 is another world compared to recreational AMATEUR dancing which is what many young girls do for a while, NP included. Only deluded/arrogant/ignorant ppl believe it possible to reach Lane's standard after a year and in one's s late 20'!!. Some film fans get upset when actors are derided, but are happy to trash dancers. Why?

[iamlost2]

Oh yeah, also when making a movie. They use many effects angles etc. She has no idea on the math. Because she doesn't understand movie making either. They cover their bases. Shoot more than the need, so there is NO way she can "do the math" accurately. I wish she never spoke out, because again, I knew she was the double, thought she did great, but her attitude sucks. bitch. You got paid to do a "stunt" no matter. Stunts & "models" in movies are very important, but that's all the are in a MOVIE.

[iamlost2]

What a prima bitch assoluta. I knew Natalie didn't do most of the dance moves, because even the closeups of her were awkard looking, not fluid as a fully trained ballerina, but like many already said, this was a movie, and Portman was the star. She did the acting, plus all the CGI effects were done by the CGI crew. They get a small mention. But, do we think she actually grew feathers? lol, hell no. I didn't like the movie anyway. Not my "type" but, the dance double had nothing to do with it

[akissy]

@akissy Also, Portman said in a November 2010 interview with WBUR that "there's a wonderful dancer, Sarah Lane, who did the more complicated pointe work. But I did the stuff THAT WAS POSSIBLE TO LEARN IN A YEAR." This might've been two years ago, but it shouldn't've happened. She knew she was a DOUBLE, and that she had make the audience BELIEVE something. Portman never said she was a professional dancer after 1 1/2 years, she said she did all that was possible learning in that time!

[akissy]

I'm just gonna remind Ms. Lane about her words BEFORE the Oscar:

In December 2010, Lane gave an interview to Kina Poon of Dance Magazine in which she answers the question "and how does it feel to be part of a performance that some critics are giving Natalie Portman rave reviews for?" by saying that "I'm not really looking for any sort of recognition. The process was a huge learning experience and I got everything I wanted out of it. But Portman deserves the recognition. She worked really hard."

[anditspaganpoetry]

@SexyTamara1985 she did ballet up until she was 13 or 14 - the exact same amount of time i spent doing ballet, and trust me, once you stop you might as well have never even trained at all. you do not simply pick up where you left off when you start again.

[KAMiiRocKMUSiCluvr]

i dont care ! haha. the acting was great and the dancing was great ! she deserved the oscar & the dancer deserves some recognition just for being a great dancer not the fact that she was in the movie or not.

[SexyTamara1985]

Portman did ballet long before this. The 8 months was just training getting ready for the film. She already knew the dance forms. She was just warming up. 80% of the dance shots are natalie. The director did the math and said so. She has talent and she is a great actress. Do research before you sit on your computer and judge.

[flabarbieri]

He didn't say "85% of the dancing was done by Natalie", he said "85% of that movie was Natalie". That is accurate. The movie happens to be about a ballet dancer, but it is still a movie and the acting takes significantly more place than the dancing. So, all right, Portman sucks as ballerina. Who cares? She is a good actress. Nobody gave her an award to the best prima ballerina of the year, they gave her an Oscar for her acting.

[flabarbieri]

@NinjaTree6 That is exactly the point. Black Swan was not the production of the Swan Lake ballet, it was a movie. Therefore, 85% of the film was the leading actress, who was chosen because of her acting, not her dancing. Sarah Lane, who is not the best dancer that I have seen and by far, certainly dances a million times better than Natalie Portman, who is an actress and certainly acts a million times better than Sarah Lane or any other really good ballerina.