The Notorious Bettie Page
(directed by Mary Harron, 2005)

Kinky is in. It's all the rage! There's Kinky Boots, Basic Instinct 2 (blaaaagghhh!), there's that Mrs. Henderson Presents, which really isn't about kink, but has nude women dancing around on a stage -- and now here's The Notorious Bettie Page. For those of you who don't know about Bettie Page, let me fill you in. I didn't know much about her myself until I saw the movie. She was raised a good, Christian girl in the south -- her parents, of course, HATE smut, but little Bettie just grows up and becomes the queen of 1950's underground bondage porn. You see, fetishes were around in that area, they were alive and well, and there were some daring men and women who took pictures of women being tied up, wearing laced up, knee high, black leather boots, women spanking other women, that kind of stuff. Bettie, who has had a failed married, has been kidnapped and raped by a bunch of young guys, and who was a straight A student in high school till she skipped an art class and got an A- and couldn't be valedictorian and get a great, college scholarship - escapes to New York, starts modeling, starts taking acting classes, and eventually meets Irving Claw and his assistant (played by Lily Taylor, I can't remember her character name) - the dude and dudette team who use Bettie for their illegal, bondage picture business.
The movie shows how normal of a person Bettie really is, how interesting it is that she stays the good, Christian girl she was raised, despite her "dark side" profession. We do, however, learn that she fears what Jesus is going to do with her for all the "sins" she's committed. But, she assumes that if Adam and Eve were created naked, then it must be okay to be naked. There was a striking scene where Bettie talks about God and Jesus while standing, tied up, arms stretched out and legs together, like Jesus on the cross. Oh, but she can only talk during this scene whenever her photographer takes the ballgag out of her mouth.
There's more I want to reveal, but I don't want to tell you EVERYTHING, even though it's based on life and what's done is already done. You see her venture out to Miami Beach to meet Bunny Yeager, another nudie photographer, who doesn't want her to be so restrained, clothing wise, so there's a lot of Bettie posing naked on the sandy beach pictures being created. And, you know, Bettie was always this hot mama, who nobody could date in high school because of her strict parents. There's also some courtroom drama (it's not bad or boring) dealing with Irving Claw and all the work he's produced. In case you're living under a rock - and have a wi-fi connection, or something, to view this website - you know that the pornography of that era is now considered pretty tame, and Jesus probably just giggles over Bettie Page's fears of what scary, terrible vengeance he might strike upon her in the afterlife.
Gretchen Mol (who I had never heard of before) was perfect in the role of Bettie Page, and I recommend seeing the movie, if it's playing near you.
In fact, you have to see it. *cracks whip* Move!
NOTE: This review was originally posted here on April 24, 2006.
(directed by Mary Harron, 2005)

Kinky is in. It's all the rage! There's Kinky Boots, Basic Instinct 2 (blaaaagghhh!), there's that Mrs. Henderson Presents, which really isn't about kink, but has nude women dancing around on a stage -- and now here's The Notorious Bettie Page. For those of you who don't know about Bettie Page, let me fill you in. I didn't know much about her myself until I saw the movie. She was raised a good, Christian girl in the south -- her parents, of course, HATE smut, but little Bettie just grows up and becomes the queen of 1950's underground bondage porn. You see, fetishes were around in that area, they were alive and well, and there were some daring men and women who took pictures of women being tied up, wearing laced up, knee high, black leather boots, women spanking other women, that kind of stuff. Bettie, who has had a failed married, has been kidnapped and raped by a bunch of young guys, and who was a straight A student in high school till she skipped an art class and got an A- and couldn't be valedictorian and get a great, college scholarship - escapes to New York, starts modeling, starts taking acting classes, and eventually meets Irving Claw and his assistant (played by Lily Taylor, I can't remember her character name) - the dude and dudette team who use Bettie for their illegal, bondage picture business.
The movie shows how normal of a person Bettie really is, how interesting it is that she stays the good, Christian girl she was raised, despite her "dark side" profession. We do, however, learn that she fears what Jesus is going to do with her for all the "sins" she's committed. But, she assumes that if Adam and Eve were created naked, then it must be okay to be naked. There was a striking scene where Bettie talks about God and Jesus while standing, tied up, arms stretched out and legs together, like Jesus on the cross. Oh, but she can only talk during this scene whenever her photographer takes the ballgag out of her mouth.
There's more I want to reveal, but I don't want to tell you EVERYTHING, even though it's based on life and what's done is already done. You see her venture out to Miami Beach to meet Bunny Yeager, another nudie photographer, who doesn't want her to be so restrained, clothing wise, so there's a lot of Bettie posing naked on the sandy beach pictures being created. And, you know, Bettie was always this hot mama, who nobody could date in high school because of her strict parents. There's also some courtroom drama (it's not bad or boring) dealing with Irving Claw and all the work he's produced. In case you're living under a rock - and have a wi-fi connection, or something, to view this website - you know that the pornography of that era is now considered pretty tame, and Jesus probably just giggles over Bettie Page's fears of what scary, terrible vengeance he might strike upon her in the afterlife.
Gretchen Mol (who I had never heard of before) was perfect in the role of Bettie Page, and I recommend seeing the movie, if it's playing near you.
In fact, you have to see it. *cracks whip* Move!
NOTE: This review was originally posted here on April 24, 2006.
Last edited by Sexy Celebrity; 06-20-17 at 07:52 AM.