Review of Rosemary's Baby (1968) by Cameron J — 04 Nov 2012

If this baby were to come out female, then forget Satanists, Mia Farrow was going to have to try and save her baby from Woody Allen, though not first, as Farrow didn't find out about Allen and Soon-Yi Previn until Previn was 20, and last time I checked, we're not in the world of "Benjamin Button" and people turn 13 before 20, so Farrow would have to keep an eye on Roman Polanski first. Come to think of it, I would love to see the ultimate showdown between Woody Allen and Roman Polanski, though it would indeed have to be over Mia Farrow's young daughter for it to stand a chance of being truly exciting, because if the two filmmakers in question were to fight to see who was more Jewish then it would be just too embarassing for Polanski, as it doesn't get anymore Jewish than Allan Stewart "Woody Allen" [b][u]Konigsberg[/u][/b]. Of course, if Allen and Polanski were to have a duel to see who's creepier, while it would probably be a close call, I think that Polanski would win, based on this film alone, as things do indeed get pretty nerve-racking, and enough for me to lean more to Mia Farrow's side in the divorce. Sorry, Frank Sinatra, but Farrow was going to need to be attached to this film so that she could better prepare herself for anything - including Satanists - if she was going to become a mother, something that she must love being, seeing as how she's had 15 kids. Of course, I'm not quite ready to tell Marlon Brando to watch his back, not because Marlon Brando has been dead for eight years, - because considering the amount of kids that Brando had, it's not too farfetched to believe that he would pull a Tupac and still keep coming out with hits long after death (Brando was a jerk and one of his kids shot a man, yet I would still consider the birth of another Brando better for this world than another Tupac album) - but because 11 of Farrow's kids were adopted, probably because, after this film, Farrow developed a fear of children falling into the wrong hands. Of course, the fatal flaw in that logic is the fact that these kids fell into the hands of Mia Farrow, whose hands certainly aren't purest. Eh, whatever, she's still a good actress, as sure as this is a good film, only, unlike Farrow's performance, this film isn't without its share of faults.

Seeing as how we're dealing with Roman Polanski here, I was expecting this film to be borderline glacial, but when it came down to it, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the film is not only not really dull, but actually fairly entertaining, and yet, while this film has enough livliness to it to stay consistently engaging, it's still rather slow, in that it drags along with only so much bite, thus leaving momentum to take some damage. Of course, it's not like this film was ever going to have all that much momentum, because, as strong and as lively as the story is, if you were wondering how they could possibly keep consequence and material up enough in the execution of this considerably minimalist subject matter for the whopping 137-minute runtime to fit organically, well, they don't. Certainly, the film's problematic combination of limited plot and execessive length isn't quite as detrimental to the film as it sounds, as there is enough compensation in the long run for the film to maintain enough momentum for the final product to ultimately reward, but make no mistake, this is a very do-little plot, with material being so limited that it's not until around the 40-minute mark when Mia Farrow's Rosemary Woodhouse character becomes pregnant, and not until around the hour-and-a-half mark when the film begins to get more into conflict and suspense. Before and between those points, the film bombards with waves and waves of excess and even repetition filler that pad things out to no end, surprisingly not to where the film is rendered biteless, seeing as how there is enough atmospheric intrigue to grace you with the feeling that it's only a matter of time before things pick up, but still to where a true sense of conflict goes limited, which isn't to say that the consequence is all that fleshed out when it does, in fact, arise. Characterization and exposition really has only so much bite to it, to where certain reactions feel disconceringly underdone, if not just plain rather farfetched (Seriously, you'd think that there would be more concern over Satanists sacrificing a baby for the sake of an acting career), and certain events feel a bit underwhelming. Again, there is thorough intrigue, and plenty of it, yet there is just so much that slows down the punch of this potentially very disturbing thriller, from some underwhelming chills to even limited plotting, thus the final product falls short of potential and runs the risk of collapsing as underwhelming, on the whole. Of course, that just makes this film's success all the more impressive, for although this film has quite a bit riding against it, for every shortcoming, there is a hit that cuts deeply enough for you to hang on, eager to see what is to happen next, and it helps that the film certainly has the looks to sustain your attention, or at least by 1968 standards.

The film did indeed look ahead of its time, though only to about halfway through the '70s or something like that, as William A. Fraker's has indeed dated, though not so much so that it's not still handsome, boasting a kind of faint yet still reasonably strikingly well-pronounced glow and coloring that both catches your eye and adds to this film's somewhat dreamy themes and tones. The film's visual style engages your eyes, but what really engages your investment and firmly establishes the film's hypnotic thematic depths is, of course, the very story that is so problematically structured, for although there's only so much bite and, for that matter, plot to this padded plot, when I said that there's compensation for missteps, I wasn't kidding, as the film has just enough consistent dynamicity and intrigue to it for you to stay invested, if not pretty engrossed. If nothing else, Roman Polanski pulls a move we're not too used to seeing him pull and graces the film with quite a bit of livliness and little dryness, thus creating a kind of entertainment value that gives the less consequential parts more humanity that engages you further. Of course, when all of the fun and games come to a slow but sure and ultimately crashing end, Polanski delivers in a fashion that has actually dated more than people say, but remains reasonably disturbing, or, at the very least, with quite a bit of intrigue that graces the build-up with fascinating mystery and makes the culmination of all of this build-up pretty piercing and rather tense. Things don't really get too down and dirty until the final act, but by that time, you're both entertained and invested enough to find yourself eager to see where exactly this film will ultimately go, and when we finally come down to big conclusion, while it's not too hard to predict the twist, you'd be hard pressed to not be affected, rather nervous and with quite a bit to chew on as you walk away from the film, and for this, credit is partially due to the performances that stand as more convincing than the actual characterization. Seeing as how there's surprisingly only so much bite to the material, - which goes plagued by underdone characterization and underwhelmed character actions and reactions - there's only so much for the performers to work with, yet just about everyone is charismatic, with leading lady Mia Farrow really standing out in the final act, which finally presents her with material for fear and emotional range that she delivers on with grand inspiration that defines both the Rosemary Woodhouse character and the true consequence of this story. I wish I could say that the film has more momentum in conflict, and that the sense of conflict itself is more buyable and less dated, but when it's all said and done, when the film doesn't entertain it engrosses, boasting bite and grace that keeps you going to the bitter end and leaves you to walk away rewarded.

To conclude this ritual-I mean, review, the film hits its share of atmospheric limp spots to bring more to attention the very limited plotting and excessive padding that all too often restrains conflict, which is already diluted by some problematic characterization and events, thus making for a film that should, for all extents and purposed, fall flat as rather underwhelming, but ultimately doesn't, as the final product engages your eyes with William A. Fraker's handsome photography and your investment with a generally well-crafted story that Roman Polanski brings to life with consistent entertainment value, broken up by intrigue, depth and, eventually, even tension, complimented by the convincing performances - particularly that of leading lady Mia Farrow - that help in making "Rosemary's Baby" a colorful and memorable chiller that leaves you thinking and rewarded.

3/5 - Good.