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Pretty Baby (1978)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
5 April 1978 (USA) moreTagline:
In 1917, in the red-light district of New Orleans, they called her "Pretty Baby" morePlot:
A pre-teen girl grows up in a house of prostitution in the Storyville section of New Orleans in 1917. full summary | full synopsisAwards:
Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 win & 1 nomination moreNewsDesk:
(11 articles)
Brooke Shields Regrets Staying A Virgin Until Age 22 (From CinemaRetro. 26 May 2009, 3:40 AM, PDT)
Brooke Shields Wishes She Lost Virginity Earlier Than 22
(From Celebrity Mania. 26 May 2009, 2:57 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Very pretty and very solid more (58 total)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Brooke Shields | ... | Violet | |
| Keith Carradine | ... | Bellocq | |
| Susan Sarandon | ... | Hattie | |
| Frances Faye | ... | Nell | |
| Antonio Fargas | ... | Professor | |
| Matthew Anton | ... | Red Top | |
| Diana Scarwid | ... | Frieda | |
| Barbara Steele | ... | Josephine | |
| Seret Scott | ... | Flora | |
| Cheryl Markowitz | ... | Gussie | |
| Susan Manskey | ... | Fanny | |
| Laura Zimmerman | ... | Agnes | |
| Miz Mary | ... | Odette | |
| Gerrit Graham | ... | Highpockets | |
| Mae Mercer | ... | Mama Mosebery |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
110 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Metrocolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreSound Mix:
MonoCertification:
Germany:16 | Australia:M (DVD rating) | Netherlands:12 | Netherlands:16 | Canada:18+ (Quebec) | Finland:K-16 (1988) | Finland:K-18 (1978) | Argentina:18 | Australia:R | Canada:R | Chile:18 | France:-16 | Norway:18 (1978) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Singapore:M18Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Dana Plato later claimed that she had been offered the lead role but her mother Kay had turned it down. moreQuotes:
Bellocq: Her father unknown, and her mother deserted the child.Violet: My mother's name was Hildegarde. Hildegarde Marr. M-A-R-R.
Priest: And she was Caucasian, or other?
Violet: She was a whore, Father.
more
Soundtrack:
Swipesy moreFAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (58 total)
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At the time of its release, PRETTY BABY attracted a lot of controversy for its subject matter and matter-of-fact nudity of pre-teen Brook Shields (Violet).
Now it would probably not get made at all -- which is a shame, because it's a solidly written and directed drama.
The late Louis Malle, who also directed the amazing BLACK MOON, approaches the subject of child prostitution without judgement or moralizing.
The film's effectiveness comes from a script that does not burden any of its characters with explanatory dialog. Most of the dialog heard is of the incidental kind. Characters do not pause to explain situations or pontificate. Malle captures glances, body language, reflections and uses the non-verbal to tell his very human story of a New Orleans cathouse.
Susan Sarandon, as Violet's prostitute mother, turns in a fine performance as a woman in denial of her reality. Keith Carradine, who plays a photographer who falls in love with Violet, delivers a perfectly tuned performance with little more than than a dozen lines of dialogue. Also worth nothing is the beautiful performance of Francis Faye as Nell, the cathouse madam. She brings a sharp gift for irony to her role.
Brooke is very, very good, too, and this was the performance of her career.