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Pretty Baby
1978 110 min United States of America R 16+
★7.0
Drama
Director: Louis Malle
Trailers
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Description
In 1917 New Orleans, a 12-year-old girl is raised in a brothel by her prostitute mother.
Budget:
$3.5M
US Gross:
$5.79M
Worldwide:
$11.6M
Starring
Brooke Shields
Actor
Keith Carradine
Actor
Susan Sarandon
Actor
Awards
Cannes Film Festival 1978
— Technical Grand Prix
Academy Awards 1979
— Best Song Recording or Musical Adaptation
Cannes Film Festival 1978
— Palme d'Or
Key opinion
Pretty Baby is a visually striking, aesthetically polished period drama that polarizes audiences due to its controversial subject matter. While many critics laud its atmospheric reconstruction of 1917 New Orleans and Brooke Shields' central performance, others find the narrative's detached treatment of pedophilia and the moral ambiguity of its characters deeply unsettling or hollow.
| Cinematography | Sven Nykvist’s lush, painterly cinematography successfully crafts an immersive, high-quality aesthetic that elevates the film's period atmosphere. | |
| Acting | Brooke Shields delivers a convincing, multi-dimensional performance that effectively anchors the film’s challenging narrative. | |
| Production | The production design meticulously and beautifully recreates the Storyville brothel environment, providing a rich, historically evocative backdrop. | |
| Screenplay | Opinions on the screenplay are divided: some appreciate its restrained, non-judgmental exploration of complex relationships, while others find the character motivations underdeveloped and the storytelling lacking in moral clarity. | |
| Theme | The film’s central premise—the portrayal of a romanticized relationship between an adult and a child—remains deeply polarizing, with viewers split between viewing it as a poignant, bold piece of art and as a morally repulsive or hollow narrative. | |
| Pacing | The film’s pacing is viewed differently by audiences; some find the contemplative, slow-burn tempo essential to its emotional resonance, while others perceive it as boring and tedious. |