| Overall Grade: |
C+ |
|
| Story: |
C |
|
|
| Acting: |
B- |
|
|
| Direction: |
C+ |
|
|
| Visuals: |
B |
|
|
Not a Page Turner
by Douglas (movies profile)
Apr 15, 2008
8
of
10 people found this review helpful
For those of you who don't know Bettie Page, let's start with a primer. Small time Southern girl, moves to the City to pursue a career in modeling in the late 1940s and soon gains renown as the first famous pin-up girl. I was expecting a movie that pursues the debate of art vs. pornography. What I got was a movie that with the exception of much nudity falls into the category of Bio-Pic Lite, much like you would see on the Lifetime network. Now, I have to give props to Gretchen Mol. She is stunning, and really captures the duality of Bettie Page that made her so popular: the ability to be simultaneously sexy and innocent. Herein lies the problem...that's all we see. We never learn of Bettie's motivation for going into this or what her aspirations were. Also, her post pin-up day reform comes out of the blue (literally) in what is the silliest part of the film. Shot in both stunning black and white and Technicolor that really capture the time period, TNBP is worth a rental. Just don't expect major drama. |
My Public Profile 
