Review of Rosemary's Baby (1968) by Drew H — 13 Mar 2011

The original devil-baby movie, this film is a horror classic tells the story of a young woman who is manipulated and subjugated by her husband and ultra-creepy neighbors until she carries Satan's baby to term.

I watched Rosemary's Baby in part because it is a canonical film in the devil movie genre, and my analysis of this genre bleeds into my academic work. I will briefly repeat my thesis here: these films reinforce the concept that evil is inherently outside of us. It nameable, definable, and recognizable, rather than the ultimate result of human folly or stupidity. Within the sub-genre of devil-baby movies, these films demonize sex and science. All of these themes are present in this film.

On a strictly film level, Roman Polanski is the master of realizing what to reveal and what to conceal. His myopic concentration on Rosemary throughout the film allows her doubts to be our doubts, her suspicions ours, and ultimately her horrors ours. The clues are so well-placed that we can't be entirely sure who to trust until the evidence overwhelms us in act two. This is masterful directing; it's too bad he's a dick.

Ruth Gordon, dear sweet Maude, is creepy as shit. Her performance is incredible, as she embodies this character with a commitment that we rarely see these days.

I read elsewhere that The Silence of the Lambs was "the most feminist movie I've ever seen." The way that Rosemary's Baby exposes male dominance over women's reproductive systems certainly puts it in that canon. And Mia Farrow's soft, high-pitched voice and vulnerable performance make her character's rape, both literally, physically, and emotionally, all the more disturbing.

Overall, this is a fantastic film, but it culturally performs in dangerous and insidious ways.