Review of The Notorious Bettie Page (2006) by Alyssa N — 15 Jun 2008

As a fan of Bettie Page, it was interesting to learn more about her life, even if this movie didn't go as in-depth as I was hoping. Gretchen Mol was perfectly cast as Bettie, and it's easy to see why so many people were drawn to both her looks and charming personality, and just as easy to understand why Bettie's drawn to the world of risque pin-up modeling.

The movie skims over some of the darker parts of Bettie's youth, however, making this a much more lighthearted version of her life. Still, I found the light tone of the movie to be an interesting contrast with how many people, even today, view bondage and S&M-related erotica, so from an artistic perspective instead of a biographical one, it works.