Born Innocent (1974)

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

The acting is good, and the firecracker script has some excellent ideas.

It is encouraging that the film ends so strongly.Otherwise, it wouldn't have been a particularly memorable film

This made for TV drama wasn't bad at all. I had expected something more like a typical after school special or perhaps even a exploitation flick, but the story lines are worked out fairly well, there is hardly any (gratuitous) violence or nudity and it stays away from any kind of simplistic message in the end.The acting isn't great, but good enough for a small TV production like this. For Linda Blair, being 14 when the film was shot, some scenes must have been pretty heavy stuff to do - and in the IMDb trivia that is confirmed. This is supposedly her first film after her iconic performance in the horror classic 'The exorcist' (1973), and that film couldn't have been easy for her to do, either.As a cinematic experience, 'Born innocent' hardly has anything to offer (personally, I do appreciate the particular time and place, though - '70s America), but the film does focus on many aspects of the troubled youth in America, for instance, her family life, her life inside among the other delinquents and also how the counselors look at things. This makes for a complete story that will make you think.A small 7 out of 10.

Linda Blair, immediately following her triumph in ''The Exorcist'' was cast in this then controversial TV movie. Christine Parker is a young runaway from an abusive home whose parents hand her over to the state. She finds herself in a detention home, where she discovers the even harsher realities of the young girls who reside there - unloved, troubled, and angry, who have the tendency to vent all their aggression onto newcomers. She finds herself as the target of their rage on evening in the shower room, where five of her fellow inmates gang up on her and violate her with a toilet plunger handle. Considered overly graphic at the time of its original airing in 1974, the scene was cut for later airings, but has been restored on DVD. Blair's nipple can be briefly seen for a few moments and that may explain why the scene was cut in subsequent TV broadcasts. As disturbing as it is, the rape is essential to the film's plot and adds to the anguish that Chris and her peers experience. When she has the chance to go home for a brief stay, her abusive father (Richard Jaeckel, magnificent) slaps her and her mother, leading the teen to run away again, taking her right back to where she started. Kim Hunter is effective as the passive, meek mother who endures her husband's insensitivity and mistreatment. Blair went on to give some more great performances in the late 70s, such as another TV movie, "Sarah T: Portrait Of A Teenage Alcoholic" and the theatrical releases "Sweet Hostage", "Summer Of Fear" and "Hell Night". Not long after, she found herself in exploitation flick hell. She is an outstanding actress, giving her all to every project, and it would have been nice if she had found some more mainstream material. Joanna Miles as the compassionate teacher, is the voice of reason and perhaps of caring in a system that does not want to take a bigger step towards actually considering the welfare of these troubled youths. Allyn Ann McLerie, as the well-meaning but ineffectual housemother Lasko, conveys the frustration and defeatist attitude of a woman who keeps things together but can't bring herself to actually make a difference in the lives of her girls. The portrayals of the other adolescents are right on target, a diverse group who all share the same pain, so much so that they become bonded in a hardened, indifferent way. Chris becomes one of the gang, and in a sadly realistic conclusion, has lost sight of any goals or aspirations she may have had to change her life.Worth viewing, still relevant today.

I was 13 years old when I first saw this movie on TV in 1974 and just recently had the chance to watch it again for the first time. After 32 years I was surprised at how well this made for TV movie had held up. The film centers around Chris Parker, a 14 year old girl played by the excellent young actress Linda Blair, who after running away from home several times due to her dysfunctional home life ends up in a state "home" for girls. The facility she is in is in reality a reform school for young women with varying degrees of mental problems due to their lack of love and guidance at home. It is very apparent that Chris doesn't belong there, she is not a criminal, just a troubled young girl who desperately wants the love and attention she was denied at home. I remember being shocked 32 years ago when I watched the infamous rape scene in the shower, and the DVD I rented from Netflix has this scene still intact. Seeing it after all the years didn't lessen the impact of the brutality and reality of this rape. I have read where this pivotal scene has been edited out of some viewings of "Born Innocent", and as awful as this sounds, the scene is central to the movie, and in explaining how Chris ends up being no longer innocent, as she was before she went to the "home". This is one of the best made for TV movies ever made. This DVD can be rented from Netflix, and I highly recommend it, even though it will leave you feeling sad in the end.

I remember this movie clearly when it debuted in September '74, and all of the controversy due to the rape with the toilet plunger. It ran on reruns, with the rape scene deleted, throughout the late '70s & '80s, but then this movie seemed to disappear in the '90s. Recently I was able to find a copy and view this made-for-tv classic. Being a fan of Linda Blair, this movie has withstood the test of time. It follows the story of a 14 year old girl that's unwanted by her messed up parents. The parents were the ones that should have been sent to reform school! If this movie was to be released today, it would still have controversy. Not only for the "toilet plunger" scene, but the fact that 14 year old characters are smoking cigarettes throughout the movie. When this movie was made, this was not mentioned due to the social stigma to smoking was not established yet. In some ways this movie is pretty tame compared to todays standards, it's still a slice of '70s fare TV, when there was less channels, but more to watch on TV. If you are a fan of '70s made-for-tv movies, then this one should be at the top of your list.