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Isabella Rossellini Speaks on Roger Ebert’s Claim That David Lynch “Degraded” Her in ‘Blue Velvet’

Thirty-eight years after the late critic's one-star review, the actress has expressed how "surprised" she was by the allegation, as she chose to portray the abused character.

In the film, Rossellini plays Dorothy Vallens, who is raped and abused by gangster Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper), who has also kidnapped her husband, Don, and son, Donnie. “Rossellini is asked to do things in this film that require real nerve,” Ebert wrote in his review. And when you ask an actress to endure those experiences, you should keep your side of the bargain by putting her in an important film.”

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