Review of Rosemary's Baby (1968) by Filipeneto — 27 Jun 2018

Roman Polanski is a classic and his long career has consecrated him as one of the most influential directors of the twentieth century, although I don't have any sympathy for him as a person. This film is probably one of the most notorious and acclaimed of his career, and rightly so.

When it debuted, in the late sixties, it was scary and I fully understand why. More than other horror movies so far, it used the permanent tension to keep the audience in absolute discomfort, not to mention that danger around a baby is something that touches the emotional side of anyone.

It's something innate. The story takes place in an apartment building and revolves around Rosemary, a young woman who impregnates after having had a mysterious nightmare, when something possessed her sexually.

Finally, other revelations, and the attitudes of a couple of elderly seemingly loving neighbors, convince her that she expects a son of the Devil, the Antichrist himself. Terrifying, is not? With such a good script it was easy to succeed, especially when Polanski so cleverly uses visual and sound effects as well as cinematography, misty and dense.

Everything was thoughtfully designed to make us tense. Rape scenes are worthy of anthology. Today, by themselves, they don't scare us, horror movies have been so full of gore and blood that these scenes have lost their strength, but if we embed them in the film, they contribute a lot to our discomfort.

Mia Farrow was at the highest level during the film, perhaps the most controversial of her career, since neither her husband supported her. Sidney Blackmer and Ruth Gordon glared at the Castevets, the movie's villains.

John Cassavetes is more restrained but does very well with his role. At present, this movie may not scare you as much as it scared you in the past, everything has its expiration date, but it remains one of the great classics of horror and must have a place on the shelf of any lover of this movie genre.