Beautiful

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Beautiful

PG-13

Released Sep 29, 2000

1h 52m

Comedy

Drama

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Popcornmeter

17%

Tomatometer

64 Reviews

54%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Mona Hibbard steadily advances as an American beauty queen in spite of her less than congenial temperament. Her best friend from childhood, Ruby, has the patience of a saint, which is why she's the one person who is willing to help Mona pursue her ambition. Ruby even helps her to hide the secret that would completely derail Mona's plan to capture the "Miss American Miss" title: an illegitimate daughter, Vanessa. Her biggest obstacle is losing her killer instinct for her maternal instinct.

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Critics Consensus

Sally Field's directing debut suffers from an inconsistent tone, implausible script, and a protagonist that critics say is one of the most loathsome to come around in a long time.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Beautiful is just bad, sadly. Where's the plot?

Rated: 2/5

Sep 30, 2010

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Ted Shen

Chicago Reader

ally Field's direction is pedestrian, though she does manage to get shamelessly winning performances out of Driver and Eisenberg.

Apr 12, 2010

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Emanuel Levy

Variety

Flat, witless, and sappy (a very bad combo), Sally Field's embarrassing feature directorial debut aims to say something "relevant" about American society's obsession with physical looks at the expense of "inner beauty" and moral integrity.

Rated: D-

Sep 12, 2006

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Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

At its heart it’s a film that is trying to critique the stigma of single motherhood and understand exactly what draws women to pageant life.

Feb 13, 2024

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Michael Dequina

TheMovieReport.com

An uneasy mix of broad satire, soap opera outlandishness, and movie-of-the-week sappiness.

Rated: 0.5/4

Jan 14, 2010

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David Noh

Film Journal International

It's treacly, plastic and shamelessly obvious, and yet, on a low-rent level, it somehow works.

Dec 11, 2006

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Cassie B

An underrated film about life in poverty for women and young girls, how they survive, and how they're pitted against each other in our patriarchal society.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/26/25

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Ashley O

This movie struggles to figure out what it is….it had an alright/somewhat interesting and original premise but with an unlikeable protagonist. And an ending that left much to be desired. This film couldn't decide if it was a comedy or a drama and didn't really nail either genre. Minnie Driver is a great actress and this film did not showcase near what she can do. Sally Field is brilliant in front of the camera but apparently not so much behind it…this was cringeworthy. The more serious and thematic moments of the film where it could have gone deeper it stays surface level and doesn't unpack all that it could. While I don't think this film was ever meant to strive for an Oscar, it could've done a lot better as they did have a decent cast to work with.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

04/17/23

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Steve D

The script is a complete mess.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

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Audience Member

I absolutely love this move! Just wish it showed more of the real places they are not pretend.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

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Audience Member

I wasnt' sure what to expect from the movie when I read the description on TV, but Minnie Driver is a good actress, and I'm very glad I gave it a try. Minnie Driver did an excellent job in the main role. It has offbeat, interesting, extreme characters and I also enjoyed the story, the friendship between Mona and Ruby, and that loyal Ruby was able to see through Mona's unlikeable self.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/13/23

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Audience Member

best movie ,but it's hard to find in stores

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/17/23

Full Review

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Sally Field

Director

Minnie Driver

Mona

Joey Lauren Adams

Ruby

Hallie Kate Eisenberg

Vanessa

Kathleen Turner

Verna Chickle

Leslie Stefanson

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Synopsis

Mona Hibbard steadily advances as an American beauty queen in spite of her less than congenial temperament. Her best friend from childhood, Ruby, has the patience of a saint, which is why she's the one person who is willing to help Mona pursue her ambition. Ruby even helps her to hide the secret that would completely derail Mona's plan to capture the "Miss American Miss" title: an illegitimate daughter, Vanessa. Her biggest obstacle is losing her killer instinct for her maternal instinct.

Director: Sally Field
Producer: John Bertolli, B.J. Rack
Screenwriter: Jon Bernstein
Distributor: Destination Films
Production Co: Prosperity Pictures, Fogwood Films, Flashpoint Limited, Destination Films, Two Drivers Productions
Rating: PG-13 (Thematic Elements|Language)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 29, 2000, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $3.1M
Runtime: 1h 52m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SR, Dolby Digital, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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