Amazon.com essential video: Psychological terrorism and supernatural horror have rarely been dramatized as effectively as in this classic 1968 thriller, masterfully adapted and directed by Roman Polanski from the chilling novel by Ira Levin. Rosemary (Mia Farrow) is a young, trusting housewife in New York whose actor husband (John Cassavetes), unbeknownst to her, has literally made a deal with the devil. In the thrall of a witches' coven headquartered in their apartment building, the young husband arranges to have his wife impregnated by Satan in exchange for success in a Broadway play. To Rosemary, the pregnancy seems like a normal and happy one--that is, until she grows increasingly suspicious of her neighbors' evil influence. Polanski establishes this seemingly benevolent situation and then introduces each fiendish little detail with such unsettling subtlety that the film escalates to a palpable level of dread and paranoia. By the time Rosemary discovers that her infant son "has his father's eyes" ... well, let's just say the urge to scream along with her is unbearably intense! One of the few modern horror films that can claim to be genuinely terrifying, Rosemary's Baby is an unforgettable movie experience, guaranteed to send chills up your spine. --Jeff Shannon
Product Description: A loving New York couple is expecting their first baby, however Rosemary's husband makes a pact with the devil to send his career skyward. No Track Information Available Media Type: DVD Artist: FARROW/CASSAVETES Title: ROSEMARY'S BABY Street Release Date: 10/03/2000 Domestic Genre: HORROR
Just plain creepy Rosemary's Baby is a classic horror film that is a far cry from the gorefests of today. Not that I don't love the gore, but Rosemary's Baby scares on a psychological level. The creeps will stay with you long after the movie is over. A must see for any horror fan.
Sid is renaming this one. It's now Rosemary's Does It Hurt Baby Is Rosemary's Baby a horror classic? Well, conventional wisdom says yes, without a doubt. It was made in 1968, placing it in the early stages of horror prominence. And, certainly, it was more difficult to make a horror film back then. Remember, this was before somebody said "You know what? I really don't need a plot here. I'll just have a killer run around after people for an hour and a half." So, this film had to have a plot, which it did. But it wasn't anything special. The number of scares in the 2+ hours: Um, roughly, ZERO. If you have no idea what the movie is about going in, you think it's a story about a young couple and the bad food they eat all the time until the satanic love scene of course. While we're here: Bad job by Satan there. He left scratches all over Rosemary! You gotta be a little more gentle in that situation. No wonder why she started to get turned off of the whole project.
The film is centered around a young couple, Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse(great porn names)who have just moved to Manhattan. They get this place that is ubercreepy and they're even warned BY THEIR REALTOR about the sketchy history of the place. But, yeah, they'll take it. Good call, Woodhouses. Guy is a struggling actor who wants to succeed. He becomes extremely close with the old couple upstairs, even foregoing a sexy a time with an eager 1968 Mia Farrow to hang out with the old man. Anyway, the Woodhouses are given some chocolate mousse by the old lady. Rosemary's is laced with something and it gets Rosemary all messed up. She doesn't eat all of it though, so she's just kinda half in the bag instead of all the way gone. So, Guy takes her to the old couple's place where Satan has his way with Rosemary in an obviously disturbing ritual. It's here that you see that the old couple and Guy are actually part of some sicko club. So, now Rosemary's pregnant. But, she thinks it was Guy that made it with her when she was passed out. I guess that was acceptable back then. She is then persuaded to choose Mr. Morris from Pretty Woman as a doctor over Charles Grodin. Bad call. The doctor makes her drink the shakes the old lady makes her everyday. He says no pre-natal vitamins or anything. And it takes her like 8 1/2 months to want a second opinion.
So, Guy is now a successful actor now that his chief rival has been stricken blind. It's obvious by now that he has literally made a deal with the devil. He traded his first born son for a good career of Broadway acting, a third-round draft pick and future considerations. How did this work? Was there a negotiation process? While we're here is Satan the New England Patriots GM? And the old people, the doctor, and seemingly half of New York are witches. They take the baby from Rosemary after telling her he was stillborn. She finally knows what's going on and goes to the old couple's apartment to find her demon child in a black draped crib with an upside-down cross mobile($11.99 at Babies-R-Us). She's immediately horrified, then recovers quickly to rock the demon-child to sleep. Talk about resiliency. The credits roll and you immediately want the 2+ hours of your life back.
Maybe this movie was scary in 1968, Sid doesn't know. If it was, then it holds up remarkably badly over time. There were roughly 85 missed chances to make the movie actually scary, and about the same number of times Sid said "When is something going to HAPPEN in this stupid movie?" It just moved so slowly. They could have shaved at least 30 minutes off of the film. Was it an innovative and different film? I guess, for its time. Was it one of the best horror films of all-time? No it is not true. The best part of this film was making fun of it. The number of jokes on this one was through the roof. That's the only reason it got the measly 1 star. But if Sid can have fun waiting in a long line for a loaf of semolina on a Sunday morning, you better believe he made this film worthwile by cracking jokes. You had the go-to, "Wow, the guy from the Dirty Dozen is all over Mia Farrow. I bet Sinatra had him whacked out immediately after filming wrapped." And you had a five minute stretch when Grodin was in the film of nothing but jokes like "OK, Rosemary. Get into the paper gown, and nurse Beethoven will be in in a minute." And, "Grodin must have welched on his deal with the devil." Also, of course, the old Family Guy joke: "We're playing house. Um, Roman Polanski's house." It was fun to rip this movie apart, but other than that, Sid thought it was a waste of time. Also, if this is what passes as "a horror classic," look for Sid the Elf's first horror script "Come On Down Here, Baby." to be released early in 2010. Just give us 45 minutes to write it.
A classic modern horror film This film is now 40 years old but it still shines bright as an intelligent and carefully constructed film of suspense and the supernatural. The city of New York is as much a player in the drama as are the nest of witches that begin to integrate themselves into the lives of Rosemary and her husband. The film is a masterful and strategic narrative that draws poor Rosemary deeper into the influence of a bunch of modern day witches trying to bring about the birth of the son of Satan.
The acting is superb, particularly Mia Farrow as Rosemary and the wonderful Ruth Gordon as Minnie Castavets, the nosey meddling controlling neighbor. Mia Farrow does an excellent job of portraying a woman very much in love with her struggling actor husband, who gradually sees the relationship with the man she most trusts deteriorate as she suspects that the witches have a diabolical plan to get her baby after it is born. John Casavetes is in many ways the true villain in the story for he destroys their loving relationship for his own career enhancement. Rosemary tries extremely hard to trust her husband but repeatedly his excuses, actions, and stories don't add up and she gradually sees him as part of the plot against her. Three older seasoned actors: Ralph Bellamy, Sidney Blackmer, and Maurice Evans are extremely talented men and bring a chilling sense of reality to the unfolding horror.
Odd images of Catholicism and Satanism haunt Rosemary's dreams. Chilling scenes unfold as Rosemary's pregnancy develops. The main characters play their roles so well that it gives the film an extra sense of reality, similar to Jody Foster and Anthony Hopkings in Silence of the Lambs. Using the best actors intesifies the mounting and creeping terror.
Even after 40 years, this film certainly can be regarded as one of the best horror films ever made. The dreams and hallucinations are very well done. Mia Farrow captures our heart and concern with her flawless performance and propels us into a story that scares us because of the integration of the horror into everyday existence.
I read a review of this recently that called Mia Farrow's hairstyle in the second half of the film "iconic". Lord help us all. However, I rush to add that Farrow's horrendous hair is about the only negative I can attach to this flick; Roman Polanski was at the height of his powers here, as were a number of folks in front of the camera, and the combination came up with an effective, if somewhat slow, thriller that still works after forty years.
Rosemary (Farrow) and Guy (John Cassavettes) Woodhouse move into an apartment building after the death of their new apartment's previous tenant. They are immediately befriended by the Castavets, Roman (Sidney Blackmer) and his obnoxious wife Minnie (Ruth Gordon, who pulled down a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance here). Not long afterwards, things start going right for the couple-- Guy lands a big acting job he's been lusting after, Rosemary gets pregnant, etc. But there's a dark lining to this silver cloud; it seems that every time something good happens for them, misfortune strikes someone else (e.g., Guy gets the part because the actor who was originally selected for it suddenly goes blind). Rosemary begins to suspect, based on a nightmare she had, that perhaps their good fortune is being guided by an outside force, and that the Castavets are somehow involved. The more she finds, however, the more she realizes that she doesn't want to know-- and the contradiction begins to drive her insane.
Polanski's script, adapted from Ira Levin's novel, practically glistens with cool. He pulled off a great one here, and turned a mediocre novel into a stunning film, lean, hungry, and pulsing with malice. Equally responsible for the excellence on the screen are the actors. Farrow and Gordon have gotten kudos from here to Greenpoint, so I won't belabor what everyone else has already said; what I find somewhat odd is that everyone overlooks John Cassavettes' performance in this flick. Given how inconsistent Cassavettes is in front of the camera, I do find that surprising; it's difficult for me to believe this is the same guy from, say, The Incubus. He plays his role to the hilt (though to really get into the meat of this, I'd have to start spouting spoilers; just in case two or three of you have yet to see the film, I'll pass). It might be heresy to say I think he's even stronger here than Sidney Blackmer is, but I do. There's a subtlety to Cassavettes' performance that I've never seen from him before or since. Great stuff.
As I write this, there's a remake in the works (Hollywood strikes again!). Directed, no less, by Michael Bay. I shudder to think (and I am tasteless enough that I love the awful sequel, Look What's Happened to Rosemary's Baby!, with all my fluffy little heart). Do yourself a favor-- forget Michael Bay exists (would that we all could) and go see the original again. And again. And again. ****
Maybe You're Right to Avoid Those Friendly Neighbors. Three years after Roman Polanski's first English language film "Repulsion" delved into the dark side of apartment living in London, the director brought "Rosemary's Baby" to the screen, adapted from Ira Levin's novel of nosy neighbors and occult horror in a New York apartment house. Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse are excited about their new, spacious apartment in The Branford and unperturbed by the building's strange history of "unpleasant happenings". Rosemary (Mia Farrow) eagerly goes about setting up house, while Guy (John Cassavetes) pursues his acting career at one audition after another. The eccentric older couple in the apartment next door are a little too friendly for comfort, but, when she gets pregnant, Rosemary is grateful for their attention...until she suspects something sinister behind it.
"Rosemary's Baby" is so effective because the idea of an ingenuous young housewife manipulated by her imposing, worldly neighbors and selfish, insecure husband is thoroughly plausible. The film's supernatural elements aside, Rosemary is a nice woman, looking forward to her first child, who doesn't realize the danger she is in. Roman Polanski shows his skill in keeping the audience aware of the danger while making it credible that Rosemary usually is not. Ruth Gordon won an Academy Award for her role as Minnie Castevet, busybody and servant to Satan alongside husband Roman (Sidney Blackmer). Apartment living again seems dangerous and claustrophobic as we witness the disturbing interaction of these four people on the 7th floor of The Branford, away from the hustle, bustle and light of the city streets.
The DVD (Paramount 2000): "Retrospective Interviews with Roman Polanski, Robert Evans, Richard Sylbert" (16 min) tell the story of how the novel came to be adapted and directed by Polanski, Polanski's conception of Rosemary, casting, and these 3 men talk about their favorite scenes. Robert Evans produced the film, and Richard Sylbert was the production designer. "Making of Rosemary's Baby Featurette" (25 min) is a publicity film made at the time of the film's original release. Roman Polanski and a young, breathy Mia Farrow talk about their approach to the film, the cast, their hobbies, and themselves in a very late-1960s tone. Subtitles are available for the film in English SDH. Dubbing available in French.
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
