Valerie Rojas
Co-Editor
Wearing a leopard print leotard, she calmly sits perched on her knees, resting between a pair of ferocious jungle cats, her head bowed, eyes peeking out from under her bouncy black bangs, staring at the camera seductively.
At other times we find her playing on the beach, naked legs covered in sea foam, a girl-next-door smile spreading across her face.
Of course there are the bondage shots, the photos that caused such uproar and made her a household name. A whip in hand and her leather corset laced tightly, she playfully dominates her victim, all the while pursing her lips in a playful smile that makes the viewer realize she’s really an innocent little girl only playing dress-up.
These images have decorated purses, T-shirts, postcards, calendars and posters. Neo-rockabilly fans seem to adore this pin-up beauty more than any other woman in history.
Many enthusiastic female fans have replicated her hairstyle, donning the ever famous severe cut bangs. Male fans have adorned their rooms with images of this cultural icon much to their parents’ disapproval.
Bettie Page, the 1950s playful pin-up who managed to make sultry, sexual poses almost acceptable by social standards, spent most of her career as a rare sex goddess, equally capable of playing the role of a vivacious vixen, a wide-eyed masochist, or an angelic saint.
The fact that Page was able to portray both images at separate times as the camera shutter clicked away is not as impressive as the fact that she could indeed portray both images at once, almost as if her innocent good girl image played “peek-a-boo” as she held her leather whip high.
While her photos are indeed infamous, most people know little about the life of Page beyond her popular pin-up portfolio.
Released April 14, “The Notorious Bettie Page,” directed and written by former punk icon and rock journalist Mary Harron, attempts to tell the story behind the girl with the curvaceous body, pert facial features and animated expressions, and it almost succeeds at doing so.
The frisky biopic, which was shot in classic black and white with occasional shifts to bright color reminiscent of Page’s postcard photo shots, begins in Nashville, Tennessee, the childhood home of Page.
The film briefly touches on childhood molestation, her first failed marriage and domestic abuse, and continues by following Page throughout her pin-up career, 1950-1957.
Actress Gretchen Mol, portrays Page with an astonishing amount of erotic charisma, reflecting Page’s sinner versus saint qualities perfectly.
Mol portrays Page with just the right amount of Southern twang, good girl playfulness and sultry sexuality.
Page, a soft, polite, eager Christian girl moves to New York in 1949 with hopes of becoming an actress.
A traditional country girl by all means, Page gets her start on the beach, when a stranger asks to take her photo. Shortly after, Page begins posing for amateur photographers, letting her exhibitionist side out when someone asks for a shot of her back-side.
It isn’t too long before Page ditches her bikini and starts posing nude. After getting involved with a brother and sister photography team, Paula and Irving Klaw (Lili Taylor and Chris Bauer) Page dons the bondage costumes, eager to please all of “the different kinds of people in the world.”
Although, the movie centers on the legal scandal and Senate investigation that arose because of Page’s bondage photos, the film scarcely explains the legal investigation or Page’s role in it.
The film briefly touches on her professional relationship with pin-up turned photographer Bunny Yeager (Sarah Paulson), the women who produced some of the best photos of Page including her acclaimed Christmas themed “Playboy” shots.
Throughout the film, Page clings to her Christianity, believing if her work was immoral, God would let her know somehow.
Some may question just how holy a person who poses for bondage shots could actually be. But the fact is, that it was Page’s wholesomeness that made her a standout. She felt no regret or shame in posing nude because she was so trusting and eager to express the holiness of her body.
She couldn’t understand the perverse nature that others saw in her art because she didn’t feel it or express it. Her work was a reflection of her good character, the want to have a good time and the need to be herself.
While the film is aesthetically pleasing, it lacks substance. Instead of expanding on Page’s character, her many relationships or how she became the starlet she was, the film jumps almost immediately into her career, one photo shoot after the other.
Just like her photos, this film allows us to see Page on a surface level. Instead of getting to know the real Page, we are treated to a 91-minute photo shoot; however, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Thanks to Mol’s stunning performance, this film is actually worth the $10 movie ticket.
