Review: Pretty Baby (1978) - A Controversial yet Fascinating Film
(1978) remains one of the most polarizing entries in American cinema history. A lush, period-accurate drama set in the waning days of New Orleans’ legal red-light district, Storyville, the film is often remembered less for its artistry and more for the firestorm of controversy surrounding its then-12-year-old star, Brooke Shields. A Glimpse into Storyville pretty+baby+1978+okru
Directed by the acclaimed French New Wave director Louis Malle (Au Revoir les Enfants, Elevator to the Gallows), Pretty Baby is set in 1917 New Orleans. The film follows Violet (played by Brooke Shields, aged 11 at the time of filming), a young girl growing up in a brothel run by the eccentric Madame Nell (Frances Faye). Violet’s mother, Hattie (Susan Sarandon), is a prostitute who is desperate to escape her life. When Hattie marries a wealthy customer and leaves, Violet is groomed to take her place. The plot culminates in a shocking auction of Violet’s virginity, followed by her “marriage” to a dashing, obsessive photographer named Bellocq (Keith Carradine). Review: Pretty Baby (1978) - A Controversial yet
The 1978 film Pretty Baby (released in Russian as Прелестное дитя The film follows Violet (played by Brooke Shields,
Shields' Perspective: Brooke Shields has stated in later years that she did not feel distressed or humiliated during filming. In 2023, she released a documentary titled Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields on Disney+ that explores her career and the sexualization she faced as a child star. Where to Watch
: The story details the daily lives of the prostitutes and the impending closure of the district by the government. The Photographer : Violet forms a complex relationship with E.J. Bellocq