Pretty Baby

"The image of an adult world seen through a child's eyes."

1978 1h 50m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 439

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In 1917 New Orleans, a 12-year-old girl is raised in a brothel by her prostitute mother.

“The image of an adult world seen through a child's eyes.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Brooke Shields
Violet
Keith Carradine
Bellocq
Susan Sarandon
Hattie
Frances Faye
Nell
Antonio Fargas
Professor
Matthew Anton
Red Top
Diana Scarwid
Frieda
Barbara Steele
Josephine

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Louis Malle
Writers: Louis Malle, Polly Platt, Polly Platt
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $3.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.3× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

48 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Louis Malle, shot by Sven Nykvist. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Suzanne Fenn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Brooke Shields and Keith Carradine and Susan Sarandon carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The image of an adult world seen through a child's eyes.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0078111 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Louis Malle directs. Sven Nykvist behind the camera. Suzanne Fenn cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $3.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 3.3× over at the box office.
348 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Directed by Louis Malle, shot by Sven Nykvist. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Suzanne Fenn shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Brooke Shields and Keith Carradine and Susan Sarandon carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The image of an adult world seen through a child's eyes.".
8IMDB entry: tt0078111 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 15 themes, including "virgin", "prostitute", "photographer", "photography".

The technical file

Cinematography: Sven Nykvist
Editing: Suzanne Fenn
Production design: Trevor Williams
Makeup / hair: Dave Grayson
Runtime: 110 min · 1h 50m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $3,500,000
Box office: $11,600,000
Return: 331% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Pretty Baby (1978)

Awards

National Board of Review: Top Ten Films

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Louis Malle

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

GenerationofSwine2023-01-12
★ 1/10
So.... why one star? Because, honestly, it's boring. It kind of does to New Orleans' red-light district what Reds did to John Reed.... sucked all the excitement out of the story in an effort to make it artistic. It's well acted, but it's weak on plot, weak on story, weak on entertainment.... but, like Reds, it's one of those movies that you have to watch because 41 years after the fact it is still being talked about. But, to be fair, I guess it's hard to make a movie about someone that takes pictures and make it riveting. After all, E. J. Bellocq wasn't exactly Robert Capa

Production companies