Exploitation in Pretty Baby?
Louis Malle's 1978 drama about a group of whores in World War I Louisiana is one of the most controversial films ever made. Brooke Shields was only twelve years old, appeared nude on camera and played a character whose virginity gets sold. People called for boycotts of the film before it was even released, and it was threatened with an X-rating.
Yet when the film came out, critics were actually quite favorable to it. Many of the accusations of exploitation came from people who never saw it or refused to watch it because of the subject matter. So is it really an exploitation film?
Fun fact - the Blondie song "Pretty Baby" is in fact about this film, because Debbie Harry was a fan of it.
Here is the full link to Mara Wilson's essay:
https://www.elle.com/culture/career-p...
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