Darren Aronofsky has received acclaim from critics and audiences alike over the years, churning out an impressive catalog of films. From Requiem for a Dream to Mother!, his films are often challenging for viewers to watch and meticulously crafted. One of his most popular films to date is Black Swan starring Natalie Portman, which centers around a ballerina that sacrifices her sanity in order to obtain the lead role, the Black Swan, in a ballet performance.
Surprisingly enough, Black Swan actually has quite a bit in common with a classic anime film called Perfect Blue. To be clear, this is not an accusation that Aronofsky has lifted his work or plagiarized anything. Instead, this is a deeper look at pieces of Aronofsky's past catalog and the ways that it appears to have heavily been influenced by the anime classic. So where exactly do the similarities begin?
Starting back with Requiem for a Dream, there's the first and most clear nod to Perfect Blue. Specifically, there is a bathtub scene in the film where Jennifer Connelly's character has just done some unsavory deeds in order to obtain more heroin. She sits in the bathtub alone in a fetal position, places her face beneath the surface of the water, and proceeds to scream. This sequence is lifted practically shot for shot from Perfect Blue, making it clear that Aronofsky has an affinity for the film. While Requiem for a Dream is a separate film from Black Swan, it's important to note this earlier lifting of the framing of this scene as it clues the viewer in to some of the plot elements that were clearly influencing Black Swan.
Starting from the top, Natalie Portman plays Nina in Black Swan. The main character of Perfect Blue is named Mima. The names are essentially the same, replacing the m's in Mima for the literal next letter of the alphabet, n, to get Nina. Had someone not seen Requiem for a Dream then this could be chalked up to a simple coincidence. However, knowing that Aronofsky has allowed Perfect Blue to influence his past work so heavily already makes it dubious that this is purely a coincidental name. The plots of both films also have several similarities worth keeping in mind.
Take for example the job that Mima has in Perfect Blue. At the start of the film, Mima is in a pop idol group that has medium success within Japan. Mima decides to leave the group behind and pursue a full-time acting career, much to the chagrin of some of her fans. Her first roles that she lands are decidedly more adult in content than her previously squeaky clean public image.
As she struggles with the intensity of filming a scene within the film, Mima is also made aware of a website that is called "Mima's Room" and appears to be posting diary entries from the point of view of Mima. This leads to Mima entering a state of psychosis. She begins to see a version of herself that taunts her for not being the real Mima. As she delves deeper into the rabbit hole of her new career her mental state worsens. The ending of Perfect Blue is decidedly happier for the protagonist than that of Black Swan, there are a lot of similarities between the two to dig into here.
In Black Swan, Nina is a ballerina. While this does not involve any singing, it is similar to Mima's initial career as a pop idol as both involve a heavy level of dancing and performance. Both Nina and Mima are seen as very innocent, and both struggle to overcome this perception of themselves from those around them. Nina's innocence is one of the factors that is holding back her dancing coach from selecting her as the lead role of the black swan. He believes that she captures the innocence of the white swan perfectly but would have difficulty capturing the more seductive and sinister aspects of the character after it transforms into the black swan.
Nina obsessively begins working and training for the part, eventually entering a state of psychosis. This leads to Nina beginning to question her own reality and memories at times, much like Mima does in Perfect Blue. There's even a moment in each film where both characters question their own involvement in a murder, wondering if they've become unreliable narrators within their own story.
Ultimately, the stories do take decidedly different turns for their endings. Mima ultimately overcomes her psychosis and discovers the true cause behind the strange occurrences going on around her. Mima is being manipulated by someone else, whereas Nina is not. Mima goes on to have a successful career, whereas Nina's future is not so bright. Nina's obsession and need to attain the starring role causes her to succumb to her psychosis, and while she gives the performance of her life and finally meets her dance coach's expectations fully, she loses her life in the process.
While there are enough differences to prevent the film from being called a straight-up rip-off, it's definitely clear that Black Swan has a lot of similarities to Perfect Blue. Aronofsky definitely took Black Swan in his own direction, which was decidedly darker. While Perfect Blue deals with the question of fantasy vs. reality, Black Swan deals with the pursuit of perfection and the cost people pay to obtain it. Both are highly enjoyable films, so definitely be sure to check them both out and see the similarities.