The Notorious Bettie Page (2005)

The life of Bettie Page, a 1950s pin-up model and one of the first sex icons in America, who became the target of a Senate investigation because of her risqué bondage photos.

Director:

Mary Harron

Writers:

Mary Harron, Guinevere Turner

Stars:

Gretchen Mol, Lili Taylor, Chris Bauer

4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gretchen Mol	...	Bettie Page
Chris Bauer	...	Irving Klaw
Jared Harris	...	John Willie
Sarah Paulson	...	Bunny Yeager
Cara Seymour	...	Maxie
David Strathairn	...	Estes Kefauver
Lili Taylor	...	Paula Klaw
John Cullum	...	Preacher in Nashville
Matt McGrath	...	Nervous Man
Austin Pendleton	...	Teacher
Norman Reedus	...	Billy Neal
Dallas Roberts	...	Scotty
Victor Slezak	...	Minister in Miami
Tara Subkoff	...	June
Kevin Carroll	...	Jerry Tibbs

Storyline

Portrait of an American innocent. In 1955, Bettie Page (1923-2008) waits to testify before a U.S. Senate sub-committee investigating the effects of pornographic material on American adolescents and juveniles. In flashbacks, we see her childhood in Tennessee, a brief marriage, a gang rape, and her going to New York City in 1949. There she takes acting lessons, models for photos, and acts in short films for adults, earning the nickname "The Pin-Up Queen of the Universe". We see her relationship with merchants Irving and Paula Klaw, photographers John Willie and Bunny Yeager, boyfriends, and the public. Through it all, she is wholesome, sporting and forthright - Eve before the fall.

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Plot Keywords:

bondage | new york city | senate | investigation | model | 

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Taglines:

Show Some Restraint.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Certificate:

14A

Did You Know?

Trivia

After she faded from public view in the 1960s, many conflicting rumors about her fate circulated. In reality, she unsuccessfully tried to live a domestic married life, and then later entered a religious seminary, briefly working as a Christian missionary.

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Goofs

When Bettie first meets future husband Billy in the park, she makes the statement that she'd seen Billy play football against Hume-Fogg high school. In reality, she and Billy both attended Hume-Fogg in Nashville, TN.

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Quotes

[for her photo shoot, Bettie is tied up wearing slinky lingerie]
John Willie: Do you mind if I ask you a question, Bettie? What do you think Jesus would think about what you're doing now?
Bettie Page: Well, Mr. Willie, I've thought about this quite a lot and I'm not really sure if I know anymore. I think God has given us some kind of talent and he wants us to use it. That's why he gives it to us.

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Crazy Credits

craft service - Grover Cleveland, craft service assistant - Benjamin Harrison

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Connections

References Destry Rides Again (1939)

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Soundtracks

Love Chant
Written by Charles Mingus
Performed by Charles Mingus
Courtesy of Atlantic Recording Corp.
By Arrangement with Warner Strategic Marketing

User Reviews

This Movie's Got Legs - And Charm.

For a film that's ostensibly about sex and leather, it doesn't have any right to be as oddly sweet as it is. The story of Bettie Page, a good Christian girl from the South who's momma wouldn't let her date until she married, who moved to New York and ended up becoming the most successful pin-up of her age, is driven by an outstanding performance from Gretchen Moll. Her Page can't quite reconcile the pictures that she takes (nobody's allowed to touch, it's all fun and respectful) with the pornography trials and supposed ill-effects that her images have on the world around her.

Page has been an inspiration to every burlesque artist since, not just because she had a figure to die for, but because she invested every picture with an innocent sense of fun that was uniquely sexy and simple at the same time. Rather like this film, in fact. Filmde in both black and white and glorious technicolour, it's a lovely way to spend a couple of hours.

Details

Official Sites:

Picturehouse Films

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

21 April 2006 (Canada)

Also Known As:

Bettie Page

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$143,131, 16 April 2006

Gross USA:

$1,415,082

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,778,006

Company Credits

Production Co:

HBO Films, Killer Films, John Wells Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1