ROSEMARY'S BABY 🤩 - Spoiler Free Reviews

I am not a fan of horror films. Most people know this about me. I do love thrillers and suspenseful stories. I love figuring out the “why” behind the sequence of events. When I was younger (much younger), I used to live in apartments. Large buildings that featured many doors and windows to try to see inside whenever passing. I would constantly make up stories about the kind of people who lived in each space. I had a wild imagination, to be sure. I pretended one occupant could be the “girl next door” type while another might enjoy wielding an ax from time to time.

Perhaps an actor was on the top floor, and a serial killer was in the basement. I used to read a ton of murder mystery novels.) I would meet someone at the laundromat and immediately concoct a total backstory. If I saw someone wearing a great outfit, I would try to guess where it was purchased for, how much, and if they were wearing a wig. I was a relentless people watcher. There was always the airport if there wasn’t enough material to dream about. This could keep me entertained for hours. You could say I was a voyeur, always creating impossible characters from the depths of my silly brain. But here’s the thing…what if some of my scenarios were actually true? What if living in my building or neighborhood was a cult? Maybe political fanatics, sex traffic victims, or even…witches. Whoa…now that would be crazy and impossible to be true. Or would it? What if I happened to live in a similar apartment building like Guy (John Cassavetes) and Rosemary (Mia Farrow)? A lovely young couple whose lives are quickly destroyed in ROSEMARY’S BABY. It is a horror story that contains no horror scenes, just brutal, eerie, ordinary snippets that still scare the “b’jeepers” out of most people 55 years after it premiered.

ROSEMARY’S BABY was directed and co-written by Roman Polanski. He had a very specific, strict vision for this film and did not let his actors improvise. He believed in using long single takes. Many key scenes in the final cut were filmed non-stop, such as the conversation in the phone booth, “let’s have sex,” the baby discovery at the end, the party with their friends, and the seconds Rosemary wandered through New York traffic. The traffic scenario was real. Roman told Mia no one would hit a pregnant woman. And Roman was the cameraman since none of his crew would take a chance at not being hit by a car. Brave Mia.

Mia Farrow actually got her hair cut by Vidal Sassoon in real life for this film (A “Twiggy look” for the times). She was married to Frank Sinatra when filming started. He told her to quit the movie because their marriage was on the rocks. Her manager told her she would win an Oscar for the role. She chose not to quit, and Frank filed for divorce. Mia was snubbed when Oscar nominations came around. Hmmm. But Ruth Gordon, who played Minnie, the nosy, fast-talking, Satan-worshipping New Yorker with a huge accent, did. She was magnificent in that part. Her pausing and quirky cadence made Mrs. Castevet unforgettable. She drove me nuts listening to her, and that’s a compliment.

The theme of ROSEMARY’S BABY was not the spooky Satan cult but rather the thought of what lies behind closed doors everywhere. We just don’t know what anyone is “into,” and that makes city dwelling even more of an unknown factor. Who lurks within the boundaries of the block we call home? Is anyone really safe? Accordingly, indeed not.

Mia let a body double showcase her big “rape” scene. She used a body suit until it was necessary to be held down. The rest of the ensemble was butt-naked. This was said to be a questionable moment for Roman Polanski’s shady past. I guess, in some ways, art does imitate life. As a side note, Roman hired Tony Curtis to be the voice of the “actor gone blind,” he kept that a secret from Mia so when she calls him to apologize, it would throw her timing off and work better for the dialogue. Mia sounded confused and awkward because she was and could not determine who was on the other line. Brilliant.

RB was not the scariest movie I have ever seen. It lingered in all the “gray” areas of life. It was provocative and blunt. It shared how even a street-savvy couple could be taken in and turned. The film projects strong, inner feelings for the naïveté of Rosemary, and the driving needs to be successful Guy, and the hell-bent mission from the Castevets. It was a psychological thriller that kept audiences up at night trying to process “what just happened” and how Rosemary could do what she does at the end. And girl…please don’t sing again. It was like running a fingernail down a chalkboard (Lalalala…ugh).

ROSEMARY’S BABY has disturbing and menacing tones that author Ira Levin intended. It was created on the cusp of the sexual revolution when powerful men were still in control. It contains innuendos about what constitutes rape. And how that definition has changed through the decades. (I hope) it is filled with flawless performances and makes audiences feel paranoid and vulnerable. ROSEMARY’S BABY is considered a huge horror film, a classic of all time, and still ranks in the top five for most critic’s lists in that genre. It is a fan and Halloween favorite, so as doors are opened on October 31st, don’t say I didn’t warn you.

It is available to rent.