description Dirty Pictures Overview
Dirty Pictures is a 2000 Showtime television docudrama centered on Dennis Barrie, the director of Cincinnati's Contemporary Arts Center. James Woods portrays Barrie as he faces prosecution over a 1990 exhibition of photographs by Robert Mapplethorpe, whose work prompted obscenity charges against Barrie and the museum. The film examines artistic freedom, community standards, censorship, and the legal responsibilities of institutions that exhibit controversial art.
help Dirty Pictures FAQ
What real trial is Dirty Pictures based on?
The film dramatizes the 1990 Cincinnati obscenity case over the Contemporary Arts Center's exhibition of Robert Mapplethorpe's photographs, The Perfect Moment. The museum and its director were tried and ultimately acquitted.
Who does James Woods play in Dirty Pictures?
James Woods portrays Dennis Barrie, the director of Cincinnati's Contemporary Arts Center, who was personally charged after hosting the Mapplethorpe show. The 2000 Showtime film centers on his legal and personal ordeal.
Who directed Dirty Pictures (2000)?
It was directed by Frank Pierson, the screenwriter of Dog Day Afternoon, for the Showtime network. The film aired in 2000, ten years after the events it depicts.
Was the Mapplethorpe exhibition actually found obscene?
No, the jury acquitted the museum and Barrie, a verdict widely seen as a landmark defense of artistic freedom in the United States. Dirty Pictures frames the case as a broader story about censorship and public funding of art.
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