The film’s power lies in its approach. Rather than moralizing the situation, Malle treats the brothel as a community, capturing the daily routines and domesticity of the sex workers with a voyeuristic but unblinking lens.
: The unconventional domestic life between Violet and Bellocq is short-lived. Hattie returns with her new husband to reclaim Violet, arguing that her marriage to Bellocq is illegal without parental consent. Bellocq, realizing that a conventional life and schooling are better for the girl's future, allows her to leave. The film ends with Violet at a train station, dressed as a typical adolescent, staring into the camera as her family poses for a photograph. The Controversy and Legacy pretty baby 1978 film
Malle, fascinated by the contrast between the gritty reality of Storyville and the poetic stillness of Bellocq’s photos, co-wrote a screenplay with Polly Platt. The result is a fictionalized narrative centered on (Brooke Shields), a child who has known no other life than the ornate, decaying brothel run by her mother, Hattie (Susan Sarandon). The film’s power lies in its approach