Rosemary's Baby

Rosemary's Baby

Starring Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon, Sidney Blackmer

Directed by Roman Polanski

The Story:
Married couple Rosemary (Mia Farrow) and Guy (John Cassavetes) Woodhouse move into a New York City apartment building after the previous tenant passed away.  Rosemary befriends a young girl there, and the next day she apparently jumps to her death.  They then meet an elderly couple who took the woman in, Minnie (Ruth Gordon) and Roman (Sidney Blackmer) Castevet.  They seem to have a strong desire to befriend the Woodhouses, and while Guy appreciates it, Rosemary slowly becomes annoyed by them.

One night, after the Castevets drop off a special dessert for the couple, Rosemary passes out and has a dream of the devil impregnating her.  She awakens the next day to find that her husband slept with her while she was passed out, and learns she's pregnant.  Soon Minnie is visiting her frequently, offering her different drinks and offers their private doctor to see Rosemary.  As the pregnancy ensues, Rosemary begins to suspect the Castevets are more nefarious than they let on, and that Guy could be in on it.  She eventually finds out that her baby might not be human, and could be a sacrifice for a cult.

The Synopsis:
Roman Polanski's "Rosemary's Baby" is hailed as one of the best horror films in history, and it's no surprise why.  Even though it runs a bit long, it slowly develops a story far beyond imagination, one that you know is evidently leading to its most logical conclusion, but like a hapless passenger on a crashing plane, can do nothing to stop it.

Based off the acclaimed novel by Ira Levin (who also wrote "The Stepford Wives"), the film is also heralded as being one of the most true-to-script films based off a book ever.  Even Levin himself called it "the single most faithful adaptation of a novel ever to come out of Hollywood."  It's rare that a film can bring a novel to life in such a meticulous way, but Polanski pulled it off.

The film also has a rare distinction in that it is one of the few horror movies to earn an Oscar, and that went to Ruth Gordon, the veteran actress who played Rosemary's neighbor Minnie, who won for Best Supporting Actress.  She delivered an impeccable performance that played off the cooky next door neighbor while harboring a deep, deadly secret.  Along with Mia Farrow (who surprisingly didn't even receive a nomination), they both turned out great performances.

Farrow's Rosemary is an interesting type of female lead, especially in the light of the modern world.  She seemingly appears to be docile, complacent and forgiving, even in the light of seemingly evil events.  If the story was done today, Rosemary would be a character who would leave at the first sign of danger, or at least fight back more forcefully.  When she passes out and has the dream of the devil impregnating her, she learns that her husband basically raped her while she was passed out, and goes on to talk about her day.  Again, if it was done today, she would probably either call the cops, or cut her husband's you-know-what off.  Yet here, she seems to accept it and doesn't give it another notice.  As she begins fearing her neighbors are devil worshipers who wish to sacrifice her child, she remains in the apartment and doesn't really do much about it (until near the end, when its already too late).  She's the epitome of that character we all yell at, "get out of there!"  Unfortunately, she can't hear us.

And its her slow spiral into a possibly unhappy ending that draws us to the film.  Farrow plays Rosemary with such innocence and vulnerability that we can't help but root for her, and hope that she somehow pulls out a victory against the dark forces around her.  We're with her as she slowly pieces the puzzle together, and sometimes we know more than she does, and we want to reach into the screen and tell her what's coming to avoid it, but again, we can't do that.  We can only sit back helplessly and watch.

Roman Polanski's directing method is the stuff of legend, a modern Alfred Hitchcock (although I don't agree with what he's done in his life, I can say that he's a legend in the realm of cinema).  He portrays Rosemary as a sincere, innocent woman, but as she begins to understand what's happening, he turns it on its head, and there's certain times in the film where the audience truly wonders if there's a cult after her baby, or Rosemary could be going legitimately insane.  Those parts are few and far between, but helps insert a nugget of doubt into our otherwise certain brain.  He fills our eyes with vivid visuals, especially in Rosemary's fever-induced dreams after falling unconscious.  The vision of the devil is terrifying, but that's not the scariest part: that happens when he asks the viewers what is worse: Satan's child, or a mother who thinks she's having Satan's child?

The film is a full, rich, terrifying roller coaster ride that starts off as many roller coasters do - a slow rise to the top, where we meet our characters and begin harboring feelings - good or ill - for them.  Yet we're still fully aware that we're on the ride, and we know the dropoff is coming.  When it does, it spirals into an extreme case of horror, one that has continued since the film's release in 1968 to today, focusing on one of humanity's most primal fears - something happening to their child.

As much as the horror takes place on screen, there was a lot of terror that happened behind the scenes.  Much like other demon-centric films (such as "The Exorcist" and "The Omen"), "Rosemary's Baby" had its share of unfortunate events behind the camera.  The Catholic Church rated it a C for Condemned, due to its overtly Satanic nature.  Mia Farrow's then-husband Frank Sinatra gave her divorce papers on set.  The place where the outdoor shots were used (the Dakota building in New York City) was the future site of the assassination of John Lennon.  Polanski's wife - Sharon Tate - and her friends were murdered by Charles Manson and his cult, and she was also pregnant at the time.  The film has been deemed to be cursed, and dealing with witchcraft and Satanism, it's no wonder why people feel that way.

The Summary:
Approaching a Satanic cult in a surprisingly realistic way, "Rosemary's Baby" is a visceral horror movie that has resonated throughout the decades, due to a visionary director, a solid novel-to-film script, and strong acting by Ruth Gordon and Mia Farrow.

The Score: A+