Review of Rosemary's Baby (1968) by Harry W — 23 Mar 2015

A superb movie from start to finish, one that builds up the suspense with about an hour and a half of tense character development before hitting a crescendo in its third act. The acting is excellent across the board; Ruth Gordon won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar, but it's really Mia Farrow who shines as the titular Rosemary, a woman driven to think that her baby has been cursed by her mysterious neighbors.

It's not horror in the way we see it today - there's not a single jump scare, or any gore - but there are lots of dark themes and trippy dream sequences filled with hellish dark romanticism. The director and cinematography are slow and subtle, allowing events to unfold as if they are every day life, and we never feel like we're being manipulated even though we certainly are.

It's the kind of film that makes you think you're on top of things, before building up to another surprise that's really been right there in front of you to decipher the whole time. The best part about Rosemary's Baby is that we never leave Rosemary, and aren't given any clues that she herself isn't given to figure out just what the hell is going on.

It's a tense, eerie mystery/thriller that's constantly surprising without being in-your-face and screaming "ha-ha! did you see that?!" Easily one of the top 5 horror films I've ever seen, though it's really a film that transcends genre.