Bettie Page was a pinup model in the 1950s, at a time when there were a lot of pinup models but not very many who were willing
to pose nude. Page, a Baptist girl from Tennessee, overcame whatever qualms she had about that and was soon one of the most famous models in America. Then, after a few years in the sun, she left the business, possibly due to a religious awakening. It sounds like Bettie led an interesting life, which is why "The Notorious Bettie Page" is a disappointing film. Written by Mary Harron and Guinevere Turner and directed by Harron (the same duo who brought "American Psycho" to the screen), "Notorious" delivers the who, what and where of Bettie's life but is scant on the hows and whys. It's a shallow recounting of events without theme or purpose. Bettie is played by the lovely and too often underemployed Gretchen Mol as a down-home girl who, after a lousy first marriage in her native Nashville, moves to New York City in 1949. Wide-eyed, naive, and intent on becoming an actress, Bettie stumbles into modeling and doesn't seem to mind the lecherous photographers who ogle sweatily at her. In fact, she enjoys posing.
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