Naked Ambition Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		1.5
Overall		4.0

Naked Ambition Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman January 14, 2026

Bunny Yeager's name is probably not overly remembered these days except by certain niche demographics, and it may be kind of quaintly salient to note that her name may not have even been that well known during what was probably just the cusp of her ultimate national (and international) fame when she appeared on What's My Line?* in 1957 as a so-called "cheesecake photographer" and promptly stumped the panel. Had she appeared just a few years later, my hunch is the panel would have had to have been blindfolded and not informed of her name, whether or not she was the actual "mystery guest", as her renown had spread considerably as the sixties got underway. This appealing documentary offers moments from the 1957 What's My Line? episode along with a wealth of other archival material to "reintroduce" a really rather iconic woman in American history to an audience which kind of maybe absorbed her impact via some kind of subliminal osmosis and then promptly forgot about her.

*Note: Here is your completely useless but kind of fun trivia for the day: though few people really recognize this anymore, the word "forte" when used as a synonym for strength or aptitude is in fact supposed to be pronounced fort, not like the musical loudness indicator. You'd think that as someone who makes part of my living with music as well as being a self admitted grammar nerd I would have known that, but I didn't until a friend told me, and I then discovered in going down a What's My Line? rabbit hole (an activity I actually highly recommend to those wanting to experience a sadly bygone civility and urbanity in American game show television) that none other than Arlene Francis repeatedly pronounces it correctly (i.e., with just one syllable) in several episodes spanning a couple of decades.

Yeager's life seems tailor made for a glossy big budget biopic, and kind of hilariously very little "fictionalizing" would need to be injected into any big screen account since her life is frankly amazing on any number of fronts (or full frontals, as the case may be). Yeager made waves in Miami in her younger years as a famous beauty queen and model, and fascinatingly she ended up learning photography in what might presage later entrepreneurial women like Taylor Swift wanting to be in complete control of her "product". She did in fact photograph herself quite a lot, but she attained her greatest fame as a champion of Bettie Page (including in Playboy) and, later, as the lens woman behind those legendary photos of Ursula Andress in (and out of) a bikini from Dr. No.

But those tidbits, as amazing as they may be, just barely scratch the surface of a woman who paved her own way professionally (often at her own peril), but whose personal life was in its own way just as charged. That includes having a deaf daughter named Lisa Irwin Packard, who is interviewed pretty extensively here and frankly may hint at some Mommie Dearest adjacent meanness in that neither of Lisa's parents learned ASL to facilitate communication with her. That seems balanced by the fact Packard is the official archivist for her mother.

There are a number of other notable talking heads, with Larry King probably at the head of that particular table, in what was evidently one of his last recorded interviews before his demise. Though few remember it now, King actually got his start in Miami, and was part of a swingin' subculture there that included Yeager (who appeared on his show there). He gives great color commentary if nothing overly Yeager specific, while a number of other people are presented in both contemporary and archival interviews that help to really offer a full and captivating portrait.

Naked Ambition Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Naked Ambition is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Music Box Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer (often) in 1.78:1 (some of the archival footage hovers closer to Academy Ratio). All of the contemporary interview footage looks sharp as a tack and features a natural looking palette. As should probably be expected, some of the archival video tends to be pretty shoddy looking, and at least some (like the Hugh Hefner footage) looks like it was probably upscaled off of an interlaced video presentation. There is commendably an absolute glut of stills offered here, and those tend to look great throughout.

Naked Ambition Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Naked Ambition features DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 and DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0 options. The surround track is probably most noticeably spacious in the kind of goofy Exotica tinged score which is obviously influenced by the likes of Martin Denny and Quiet Village, or some of Les Baxter's albums. Otherwise, both the 5.1 and 2.0 tracks offer similar listening experiences with regard to both voiceover and the many talking head segments. Optional English subtitles are available.

Naked Ambition Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Aside from the interview with the directors and the trailer, the other supplements are basically deleted scenes and/or unused excerpts from various interviews with people in the film.

• Interview with Directors Kareem Tabsch and Dennis Scholl (HD; 13:32)


• Never Stopped Working (HD; 1:12)


• Models and Family Vacations (HD; 1:46)


• All Florida Photo (HD; 1:31)


• Ursula Andress and Pictures of Men (HD; 1:23)


• Maria Stinger (HD; 1:22)


• Theatrical Trailer (HD; 1:44)

Naked Ambition Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Bunny Yeager's life is going to be prime territory for some enterprising actress / producer (Emma Stone? Jennifer Lawrence?), mark my words. This is an amazing life story and it's well told in this documentary. Technical merits are generally solid and the supplements are enjoyable. Recommended.