Dirty Pictures (television movie)
Encyclopedia
Dirty Pictures is a 2000 American
docudrama
directed by Frank Pierson. The teleplay
by Ilene Chaiken
focuses on the 1990 trial of Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center
director Dennis Barrie, who was accused of promoting pornography
by presenting an exhibit of photographs by Robert Mapplethorpe
that included images of naked children and graphic displays of homosexual sadomasochism.
The film premiered on Showtime on May 20, 2000. It later was released on both videotape
and DVD
.
, opts to keep it on the schedule even after the prestigious Corcoran Gallery of Art
in Washington, DC cancels it from their orface.
Even before the exhibit opens, controversy about its content arises and is fueled by the local media, and after it does, Barrie is indicted and put on trial on pandering and obscenity charges, and he and his family become the center of the highly charged case. As time passes, they become the targets of ongoing harassment and ridicule, are ostracized by their friends, offered a substantial bribe by the shady spokesman for a right-wing
organization, and bullied by Monty Lobb, leader of the conservative group People for Community Values, but also find themselves receiving a great deal of support from not only the art community at large, but local citizens as well. As his marriage begins to disintegrate and the prospect of a jail sentence looms before him, he finds himself torn between his devotion to his family and his determination to defend the doctrines of the First Amendment
.
Barrie ultimately is found not guilty. Via an epilogue
we learn his marriage eventually ended in divorce
and, despite his legal victory, his experience and the wide publicity it received consequently impacted on other museum curators and boards who opted to avoid presenting potentially controversial exhibits in their venues for fear of a similar backlash.
Throughout the film, scripted scenes intermingle with archival interviews with George H. W. Bush
, Jesse Helms
, Patrick Buchanan, Barney Frank
, William Buckley
, Susan Sarandon
, and Salman Rushdie.
and depictions of nature.
The film was shot in Toronto
, with Old City Hall
used as the setting for the courtroom scenes.
, John Carman said the film "labors to apply a semigloss coat of dramatic entertainment to a thorny social issue . . . But the best efforts of veteran director Frank Pierson and screenwriter Ilene Chaiken can't turn the trick . . . We may not know much about art, or First Amendment niceties, but who can't relate to a family in turmoil? Problem is, there's a de rigueur movie feel to it. Real or not, these story points pull our chain too obviously. The movie is drier but more rewarding when it sticks to the point."
In Time
, James Poniewozik described the film as a "mechanical, insultingly didactic placard . . . that wants to be an agitprop documentary, interrupting its storyline with interviews of mostly pro-Mapplethorpe notables. The film isn't obligated to be neutral, but it's so bullying and one-sided that a viewer feels guilty for agreeing with it. Defending an artist who preferred aesthetics to righteousness, Dirty Pictures sadly advances exactly the opposite."
Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly
called the film "titillatingly titled but artistically timid" and added, "Chaiken and Pierson drain Dirty Pictures of engaging drama by denying the opposition any believability; they present Barrie's persecutors as hostile idiots and hopeless prudes . . . The director further hobbles the movie's pace by interrupting the narrative with commentator interviews . . . [which], while occasionally eloquent, are also entirely predictable . . . Will viewers come away with renewed respect for Mapplethorpe's artistic intentions? Maybe. But they might also feel the way the jury does here: condescended to, as if we aren't capable of grappling with disturbing images without an art expert guiding us through them like a therapist."
Channel 4
describes it as "flawed but still engaging . . . more notable for what it says than the way it actually says it . . . it's a thought-provoking trip driven by the reliably charismatic Woods. While the issues themselves get a thorough airing however, other aspects are less satisfying. Supporting characters are underwritten, odd legal issues are over-emphasised and the domestic scenes scream 'made-for-TV'. In purely dramatic terms the most powerful moment comes right at the end and the stark conclusion goes a long way to redeeming the film's inadequacies, even if the events that inspired it are profoundly depressing."
Time Out London says, "Coming over at times like a radical left-field essay film . . . [it] lifts off from its factual origins to deliver a major plea for tolerance and minority understanding, and against political censorship in culture generally."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
docudrama
Docudrama
In film, television programming and staged theatre, docudrama is a documentary-style genre that features dramatized re-enactments of actual historical events. As a neologism, the term is often confused with docufiction....
directed by Frank Pierson. The teleplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
by Ilene Chaiken
Ilene Chaiken
Ilene Chaiken is an American television producer, director and writer. Chaiken is best known as being the co-creator, writer and executive producer of the television series The L Word...
focuses on the 1990 trial of Cincinnati Contemporary Arts Center
Contemporary Arts Center
The Contemporary Arts Center is a pioneering contemporary art museum located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The CAC is a non-collecting museum that focuses on new developments in painting, sculpture, photography, architecture, performance art and new media...
director Dennis Barrie, who was accused of promoting pornography
Pornography
Pornography or porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purposes of sexual arousal and erotic satisfaction.Pornography may use any of a variety of media, ranging from books, magazines, postcards, photos, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video,...
by presenting an exhibit of photographs by Robert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe
Robert Mapplethorpe was an American photographer, known for his large-scale, highly stylized black and white portraits, photos of flowers and nude men...
that included images of naked children and graphic displays of homosexual sadomasochism.
The film premiered on Showtime on May 20, 2000. It later was released on both videotape
Videotape
A videotape is a recording of images and sounds on to magnetic tape as opposed to film stock or random access digital media. Videotapes are also used for storing scientific or medical data, such as the data produced by an electrocardiogram...
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
.
Plot synopsis
Dennis Barrie books a potentially controversial exhibit of Robert Mapplethorpe of nude photography for the Contemporary Arts Center and, with the support of his board of directorsBoard of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
, opts to keep it on the schedule even after the prestigious Corcoran Gallery of Art
Corcoran Gallery of Art
The Corcoran Gallery of Art is the largest privately supported cultural institution in Washington, DC. The museum's main focus is American art. The permanent collection includes works by Rembrandt, Eugène Delacroix, Edgar Degas, Thomas Gainsborough, John Singer Sargent, Claude Monet, Pablo...
in Washington, DC cancels it from their orface.
Even before the exhibit opens, controversy about its content arises and is fueled by the local media, and after it does, Barrie is indicted and put on trial on pandering and obscenity charges, and he and his family become the center of the highly charged case. As time passes, they become the targets of ongoing harassment and ridicule, are ostracized by their friends, offered a substantial bribe by the shady spokesman for a right-wing
Right-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
organization, and bullied by Monty Lobb, leader of the conservative group People for Community Values, but also find themselves receiving a great deal of support from not only the art community at large, but local citizens as well. As his marriage begins to disintegrate and the prospect of a jail sentence looms before him, he finds himself torn between his devotion to his family and his determination to defend the doctrines of the First Amendment
First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The First Amendment to the United States Constitution is part of the Bill of Rights. The amendment prohibits the making of any law respecting an establishment of religion, impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering...
.
Barrie ultimately is found not guilty. Via an epilogue
Epilogue
An epilogue, epilog or afterword is a piece of writing at the end of a work of literature or drama, usually used to bring closure to the work...
we learn his marriage eventually ended in divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
and, despite his legal victory, his experience and the wide publicity it received consequently impacted on other museum curators and boards who opted to avoid presenting potentially controversial exhibits in their venues for fear of a similar backlash.
Throughout the film, scripted scenes intermingle with archival interviews with George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
, Jesse Helms
Jesse Helms
Jesse Alexander Helms, Jr. was a five-term Republican United States Senator from North Carolina who served as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee from 1995 to 2001...
, Patrick Buchanan, Barney Frank
Barney Frank
Barney Frank is the U.S. Representative for . A member of the Democratic Party, he is the former chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and is considered the most prominent gay politician in the United States.Born and raised in New Jersey, Frank graduated from Harvard College and...
, William Buckley
William Buckley
William, Will or Bill Buckley may refer to:* William F. Buckley, Jr. , American author and conservative commentator* William Frank Buckley, Sr. , lawyer in Tampico, Mexico...
, Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon
Susan Sarandon is an American actress. She has worked in films and television since 1969, and won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in the 1995 film Dead Man Walking. She had also been nominated for the award for four films before that and has received other recognition for her...
, and Salman Rushdie.
Principal cast
- James WoodsJames WoodsJames Howard Woods is an American film, stage and television actor. Woods is known for starring in critically acclaimed films such as Once Upon a Time in America, Salvador, Nixon, Ghosts of Mississippi, Casino, and in the television legal drama Shark. He has won three Emmy Awards, and has gained...
- Dennis Barrie - Craig T. NelsonCraig T. NelsonCraig Theodore Nelson is an American actor. He is probably best known for his Emmy-winning roles as Hayden Fox on the TV series Coach, and as Steve Freeling in the 1982 film Poltergeist. He also starred in The Incredibles in 2004 as Mr...
- Sheriff Simon Leis - Diana ScarwidDiana ScarwidDiana Scarwid is an American actress. Scarwid has done work in film, television and theater.-Personal life:Scarwid was born in Savannah, Georgia, and left Georgia at the age of 17, heading to New York to become an actress. She graduated from Pace University and The American Academy of Dramatic...
- Dianne Barrie - Leon PownallLeon PownallLeon Pownall was a Welsh Canadian actor and director.He was born in Wrexham in Wales and came to Hamilton, Ontario with his family in 1957...
- District Attorney Prouty - Matt North - Monty Lobb
- David HubandDavid HubandDavid Huband , also known as Dave Huband, is a Canadian actor. He is best known for his roles on Cinderella Man as Ford Bond and in the films Cube Zero, Dirty Pictures and The Lookout.-Career:...
- Sirkin - Judah KatzJudah KatzMontreal born and classically trained actor Judah Katz has worked in Toronto and Los Angeles for more than 25 years, appearing on television and in films....
- Mizibov - Rachael CrawfordRachael CrawfordRachael Crawford is an actress known primarily for her role in Show Me Yours as Dr. Kate Langford...
- Bosworth - Marnie McPhail - Reising
- R.D. Reid - Albanese
- Allegra Fulton - Angela
- Michele Muzzi - Brenda
- Martin RoachMartin RoachMartin Jamie Roach is a Canadian actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles on Aaron Stone as T. Abner Hall and in the films Cube Zero, Diary of the Dead, and The Lookout.-Filmography:* Producing Parker as Dr...
- Ed - Tony De Santis - Floyd
- Kenneth McGregor - Gil
- Jeff Pustil - Harry
- Sally CahillSally CahillSally Cahill is a Canadian voice actor and onscreen actress.She is known for providing the voice of Ada Wong in Resident Evil 2, Resident Evil 4 and The Darkside Chronicles...
- Liz - Linda Goranson - Mary
- Geoffrey Bowes -Suit
- John EvansJohn Evans- Academics :*Sir John Evans , English archaeologist and geologist*John Davies Evans , English archaeologist specialising in the prehistory of the Mediterranean and Malta, former Director of the Institute of Archaeology, London...
- Tucker - Jonathan Whittaker - Muntz
- Colin FoxColin FoxColin Fox is the national spokesperson of the Scottish Socialist Party, and a former member for Lothian in the Scottish Parliament...
- Walsh - Michael SeaterMichael SeaterMichael Bruce Patrick Seater is a Canadian actor. He is known for his role as Derek Venturi on Life with Derek and for his role as Tom Bellow in 18 to Life.-Biography:Seater was born in Toronto, Ontario...
- Ian - Stephen Joffe - Kevin Barrie
- Nicky GuadagniNicky GuadagniNicky Guadagni is a Canadian actress who has worked on stage, radio, film and television.-Career:Originally from Montreal, Nicky Guadagni majored in drama at Dawson College and went on to train at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. Her first role after graduation was playing Miranda, with...
- Kardon - Nancy Beatty - Reisman
- Lawrence BayneLawrence BayneLawrence Bayne is a Canadian actor, born November 11, 1960 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He has appeared in various movies and television series, both live action and animated, and also sings/writes with his band The Lawrence Bayne Issue....
- Stein - Dave Nichols - Johnson
- Michael DysonMichael DysonMichael Eric Dyson is an American academic, author, and radio host. He is a professor of sociology at Georgetown University. Described by Michael A. Fletcher as "a Princeton Ph.D. and a child of the streets who takes pains never to separate the two", Dyson has so far authored and edited 18 books...
- Bailiff - Frank MooreFrank MooreFrank C. Moore II was a New York-based painter, winner of the Logan Medal of the arts, and a member of the Visual AIDS Artist Caucus—the organization responsible for the Ribbon Project, A Day Without Art, and A Night Without Light.Born in Manhattan in 1953, Moore moved with his family to Long...
- Ruberg
Production notes
Many of the actual Mapplethorpe photographs displayed in the exhibit, including some of the more controversial ones, are seen in the film. A warning at its start advises viewers of the film's content and explains the necessity of displaying the images to allow both an understanding of the graphic nature of the handful of provocative pictures that prompted Barrie's arrest and an appreciation for the overall beauty of the photographer's portraituresPortrait photography
Portrait photography or portraiture is the capture by means of photography of the likeness of a person or a small group of people , in which the face and expression is predominant. The objective is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the subject...
and depictions of nature.
The film was shot in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, with Old City Hall
Old City Hall (Toronto)
Toronto's Old City Hall was home to its city council from 1899 to 1966 and remains one of the city's most prominent structures. The building is located at the corner of Queen and Bay Streets, across Bay Street from Nathan Phillips Square and the new City Hall in the centre of downtown Toronto...
used as the setting for the courtroom scenes.
Critical reception
In his review in the San Francisco ChronicleSan Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
, John Carman said the film "labors to apply a semigloss coat of dramatic entertainment to a thorny social issue . . . But the best efforts of veteran director Frank Pierson and screenwriter Ilene Chaiken can't turn the trick . . . We may not know much about art, or First Amendment niceties, but who can't relate to a family in turmoil? Problem is, there's a de rigueur movie feel to it. Real or not, these story points pull our chain too obviously. The movie is drier but more rewarding when it sticks to the point."
In Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
, James Poniewozik described the film as a "mechanical, insultingly didactic placard . . . that wants to be an agitprop documentary, interrupting its storyline with interviews of mostly pro-Mapplethorpe notables. The film isn't obligated to be neutral, but it's so bullying and one-sided that a viewer feels guilty for agreeing with it. Defending an artist who preferred aesthetics to righteousness, Dirty Pictures sadly advances exactly the opposite."
Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
called the film "titillatingly titled but artistically timid" and added, "Chaiken and Pierson drain Dirty Pictures of engaging drama by denying the opposition any believability; they present Barrie's persecutors as hostile idiots and hopeless prudes . . . The director further hobbles the movie's pace by interrupting the narrative with commentator interviews . . . [which], while occasionally eloquent, are also entirely predictable . . . Will viewers come away with renewed respect for Mapplethorpe's artistic intentions? Maybe. But they might also feel the way the jury does here: condescended to, as if we aren't capable of grappling with disturbing images without an art expert guiding us through them like a therapist."
Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
describes it as "flawed but still engaging . . . more notable for what it says than the way it actually says it . . . it's a thought-provoking trip driven by the reliably charismatic Woods. While the issues themselves get a thorough airing however, other aspects are less satisfying. Supporting characters are underwritten, odd legal issues are over-emphasised and the domestic scenes scream 'made-for-TV'. In purely dramatic terms the most powerful moment comes right at the end and the stark conclusion goes a long way to redeeming the film's inadequacies, even if the events that inspired it are profoundly depressing."
Time Out London says, "Coming over at times like a radical left-field essay film . . . [it] lifts off from its factual origins to deliver a major plea for tolerance and minority understanding, and against political censorship in culture generally."
Awards and nominations
- Golden Globe Award for Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made for Television (winner)
- Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television (James Woods, nominee)
- Emmy AwardPrimetime Emmy AwardThe Primetime Emmy Awards are awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in recognition of excellence in American primetime television programming...
for Outstanding Cinematography for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (nominee) - Emmy Award for Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Miniseries or a Movie (nominee)
- Satellite Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or TV FilmSatellite Award for Best Actor - Miniseries or TV Film-1990s:*1996: Alan Rickman - Rasputin: Dark Servant of Destiny**Beau Bridges - Hidden in America**Ted Danson - Gulliver's Travels**Eric Roberts - In Cold Blood**James Woods - The Summer of Ben Tyler*1997: Gary Sinise - George Wallace...
(Woods, winner) - Satellite Award for Best TV FilmSatellite Award for Best TV FilmThe Satellite Award for Best Film Made for Television is one of the annual Satellite Awards given by the International Press Academy.- 1990s :- 2000s :...
(nominee) - Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Miniseries or Television Movie (Woods, nominee)
- American Cinema EditorsAmerican Cinema EditorsFounded in 1950, American Cinema Editors is an honorary society of film editors that are voted in based on the qualities of professional achievements, their education of others, and their dedication to editing itself. The society is not to be confused with an industry union, such as the I.A.T.S.E...
Eddie Award for Best Edited Motion Picture for Non-Commercial Television (winner) - Monte CarloMonte CarloMonte Carlo is an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco....
TV Festival Golden Nymph Award for Best Film (winner)