Aedonerre I gave this film a 9 out of 10, because it was exactly what I expected it to be.

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Salubfoto It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

Edwin The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

KineticSeoul I never knew anything about or even heard of Bettie Page until I saw this movie. And I think it's decent for a HBO flick but nothing amazing but still a decent watch. Now Bettie Page was America's sensational pin-up girl during the 50's that was notorious for her bondage picks which are pretty tame in today's standards. And the setting is in a period when censorship was very tough, to the point some politicians were claiming that pornographic images are worse than communism. Like the title what drives this movie is the characters of Bettie Page. Although it goes in a straightforward biographical film from how she was a young Christian to how she became a pin-up girl. And Bettie Page is a interesting character and despite her very naive personality she was a likable person. Because despite the hardships she faced and major sexual harassment she got from a young age, she still has this bright and cheerful personality about her. And how she still has kind and friendly nature towards everyone without being bitter despite her circumstances. The directing style is slightly unique as well. It has this retro feel to it and when Bettie is in New York it's black and white to bring about that period feel. And when she is in Miami it's colored but still has that retro visuals. Overall this is a alright watch but nothing all that entertaining or engrossing for a movie about the life of a pin-up girl. Everyone's performances were just excellent especially Gretchen Mol who really captures the essence of Bettie Page.5.5/10

Robert J. Maxwell In the 1890s you couldn't show an ankle, now the internet is awash in explicit sexuality of the most diverse sort. Bettie Page came somewhere in between, like the 1950s, when brassieres were conical and foundation garments (that is, girdles) were the ne plus ultra of sensuality in magazines with titles like "Tip and Toe" and "Black Stockings." It's probably an interesting story of Bettie Page's rise to fame as a model in these schlock magazines and movies but you won't find it here.What you find here is a rather routine story of a not-so-young girl from Nashville, Tennessee, who isn't ashamed of her body, despite the calumny of her family and the Baptist church She's a kind of Candide among sharks. Good thing too. There are one or two scenes of Gretchen Moll naked, full frontal, and a couple of reenactments of her role in mild S/M movies that ought to turn on the preverts among us and every British man on earth.I don't know why I should bother outlining the story. You could probably write it yourself between snoozes. Bettie, you'll be surprise to find out, relishes the prospect of giving pleasure to others, as long as it preserves her virtue. In fact there is a nicely done scene of Bettie being unwittingly lured into a gang bang as a youth, probably fabricated. Oh, and there's also a suggestion of sexual abuse. Ho hum.Sadly, once she gets into the major leagues, her managers push the envelope too far and she gets into trouble. And all because she's a Rousseauian savage.This is an HBO production. They've come up with some fine, challenging stuff -- Citizen X and others -- but this isn't one of them.I have a poster of Bettie Page on the wall of my hallway. She's not particularly attractive. I'll tell you why it's there. I have a preverted brother who was fond of her. And I have a young lady chat friend who is an Argentinian midget who asked if I knew anything about her. Queries from two such sources were impossible to forget, so I ordered a poster. Haven't looked at it in years.

lost-in-limbo Sex sells… but they weren't ready for the kinkiness. Director Mary Harron (American Psycho, I Shot Andy Warhol) crafts out a respectably diverting, but moving bio-pic on legendary cult pin-up sensation Bettie Page. The narrative follows on through her southern childhood of a religious upbringing with a controlling mother to her quest of being an inspired actress (something and then it took off for her with the modelling jobs, especially her participation in outlawed bondage fetish photographs/and films that would cause a ruckus for their deviant nature and would become a target of a Senate investigation. She was a natural in what she did because she loved what she was doing, and became one of the world's first sex icons… and a timeless one too. What really makes this one work is the tremendously radiant and fetching Gretchen Mol who really does sincerely morph into Bettie Page's buxom shape and spirited persona. It's an admirably flawless and confident performance. Some of the forlorn encounters/or dilemmas facing her character could have tipped her over the edge or mentally damaged her, but she always seemed to find some sort strength to pull through it. The rest of the performances are truly fitting. Chris Bauer and Lili Taylor are outstanding as Irving and Paula Klaw who set-up and photographed Page's bondage pictures. An impulsive Jared Harris has fun with his part, and has some amusing scenes with Mol that really open up her character. Sarah Paulson, Cara Seymour and John Cullum are also good. Filmed mostly in black and white, Harron presents an ideal period flavour of the times (the 1950's --- sexual repression) and inserts some provocatively stylised filming techniques and a tuneful jazz score. Maybe not as outrageous as it could have been (well anyhow it would be tame by today's standards), but still its quite quirky and risqué in a tasteful sense with exposing flesh/nudity. Page rightly saw nothing wrong about what she did, just another expressive art form… but this did affect her ambitions of becoming a serious actress. The story does seem to loose its way in the last third, as it's dramatic structure becomes choppy and briskly concluded. It was an interesting look at the exploration of sexuality and the growing pop-culture that a society at the time couldn't understand or come to grips with.

dougdoepke Those naughty magazines on display at the beginning may have been available in some big cities in the early 50's, but they sure as heck weren't in small town America. My first exposure (no pun) was an early edition of Playboy, circa 1955, which none of us teenage boys could believe. Of course, Hefner didn't traffic in fetishes like the Klaws, still the lid was down pretty tight on the female form during the period. Notice too, how the Congressional sub-Committee links pornography with rotting the country's foundation— an extension of the McCarthy chill that in fact spread beyond politics to the culture as a whole. (For a deeper look at the anti- pornography hysteria, check out "Perversion for Profit", a half-hour curiosity TMC revives from time to time.)The movie itself is pretty shallow. Incredibly, Bettie is portrayed as an uncomprehending innocent even amid all the lurid graphics, shady characters, and eager men. And since the movie follows her, we don't get much insight beyond the superficial into either her emotions or the world she's a part of. What we do get are miles of titillating footage of Bettie posing in various stages of undress. That's okay to a point, but then what's the point of the film beyond that of exploiting an underground icon for titillation purposes. At least, the screenplay has the good sense to resist passing judgment on her career, and thus on itself. All in all, the movie may be pretty to look at and so certainly is Bettie, but don't expect much more than a glossy surface.