Not a Pretty Picture review – Martha Coolidge’s recreation of her rape remains shockingly powerful
Fifty years after its release, Coolidge’s dramatisation of the key moments before and after her rape is still absolutely essential
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Brilliant Brechtian experiment … a still from Martha Coolidge’s Not a Pretty Picture. Photograph: Capital Pictures/AlamyView image in fullscreenBrilliant Brechtian experiment … a still from Martha Coolidge’s Not a Pretty Picture. Photograph: Capital Pictures/AlamyMoviesReviewNot a Pretty Picture review – Martha Coolidge’s recreation of her rape remains shockingly powerfulFifty years after its release, Coolidge’s dramatisation of the key moments before and after her rape is still absolutely essentialPeter BradshawTue 30 Jun 2026 04.00 EDTLast modified on Tue 30 Jun 2026 04.02 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleMartha Coolidge’s overwhelmingly candid and courageous personal docudrama from 1976 is a pioneering study of rape made more powerful by the radical modes of scrutiny that she…
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