This is where the archivist’s heart beats faster. "172" is not a standard part of the film’s title. So, what does it mean?
There are three leading theories among collectors:
Given the context ("Rip" implies a digital file), 172 is almost certainly the file size in MB. It tells you the quality: This is an ancient, likely third-generation copy (VHS -> Capture Card -> DivX/MPEG -> 172 MB). It will be blocky, waxy, and full of tracking errors. And that is exactly what purists want.
The term "UNCUT" is the primary driver of this file’s value. Depending on the source, the edited versions remove approximately 60 to 90 seconds of footage. What is missing? Pretty Baby 1978 Original Vhs Rip - UNCUT- 172
The original VHS is one of the only formats where you can see the film exactly as Malle intended (for better or worse) without the digital "fixes" applied in the 1990s and 2000s.
Before understanding the VHS, we must understand Pretty Baby (1978). Directed by the legendary Louis Malle (Au Revoir les Enfants, Atlantic City), the film stars a 12-year-old Brooke Shields as Violet, a child living in a New Orleans brothel during the 1910s. The plot, which involves the auctioning of her virginity and a relationship with a photographer (Keith Carradine), sparked immediate and violent outrage upon release.
Paramount Pictures released the film amidst protests and calls for a boycott. The debate was binary: was it a serious art film about exploitation, or was it itself an act of exploitation? This is where the archivist’s heart beats faster
Because of this controversy, the film’s distribution history is a mess of edits. The theatrical cut was trimmed in several countries. The television cut was eviscerated. The "director's cut" on later DVDs restored some, but not all, content.
This brings us to the original VHS.
In the dark corners of film collecting and data archiving, certain file names carry a mythical weight. Few are as loaded—or as difficult to discuss with nuance—as the string of text: "Pretty Baby 1978 Original Vhs Rip - UNCUT- 172." Given the context ("Rip" implies a digital file),
To the uninitiated, this looks like a typo-ridden title from a forgotten torrent site. To the dedicated cinephile and media preservationist, it represents a digital Rosetta Stone. It points to a lost version of a controversial art film, a physical media relic, and a censorship battleground all wrapped in a blurry, analog-heated MP4.
Let’s break down exactly what this file is, why the "172" matters, and why collectors are still hunting for this specific rip decades after the film’s release.