31 Days of Halloween: Rosemary's Baby

A landmark film of the horror genre, Rosemary's Baby (1968) also marked Roman Polanski's U.S directorial debut. The film, a runaway hit on release, was the prototype that inspired the onslaught of big-budget "A" horror films that followed: The Exorcist, The Omen, etc.

In the tradition of Hitchcock, Polanski achieves his effects with little overt violence and gore but much finesse. Like Hitchcock, Polanski masterfully commandeers the emotions of his audience. Drawn into Rosemary's point of view and her growing alarm, the viewer becomes increasingly aware that something is very wrong but, like Rosemary, doesn't grasp exactly what has happened until the final scenes.

This suspense is propelled by a deliberate ambiguity that implies Rosemary's fright may have a rational explanation (women do have difficult pregnancies), that her fears may be paranoia-based (though related to an infamous Satanist, her neighbors could just be a pair of elderly oddballs). On the other hand, the storyline and action are such that the viewer has difficulty simply writing off Rosemary's anguish to imagination and coincidence. Equally ambiguous throughout much of the film are the majority of the characters. While Rosemary remains constant as the naive young wife, those around her are more enigmatic - from her ambitious actor husband and her intrusive neighbors to her wise and kindly old doctor. Cleverly, several of the most villainous characters are also the most comically eccentric.

The subtle intermingling of suspense with irony and humor is one of the film's distinctive qualities. A few unforgettable scenes: Rosemary (Mia Farrow) and her husband Guy (John Cassavetes) are having dinner with her friend Hutch (Maurice Evans) who describes the Bramford building's ghoulish history (including a pair of sisters who devoured children) as he carves lamb at the dinner table...a graphic and shocking suicide scene in front of the Bramford simultaneously introduces the Castevets: Minnie (Ruth Gordon), dressed and made up in the manner of an over-the-top Christmas tree, and Roman (Sidney Blackmer), clad as though vaudeville was still alive and well...and finally, when Rosemary sees her baby for the first time she, uncomprehending, shrieks, "What have you done to its eyes?" Roman Castevet adroitly responds, "He has his father's eyes"...

Another of the film's delights is its painstaking recreation of the time in which it was set, late 1965 to mid-1966. Costume designer Anthea Sylbert precisely captured that timeframe's contemporary look with Rosemary's short shift dresses (some with peter pan collars), a long and luxurious plaid skirt, red chiffon lounging pajamas. Rosemary has her blunt-cut pageboy snipped short by Vidal Sassoon, she relaxes at home reading Sammy Davis, Jr.'s book Yes, I Can, the Pope's visit to New York is glimpsed on TV, and Time Magazine's famous "Is God Dead?" cover is shown on a waiting room table.

The hand-picked supporting cast includes especially solid performances by Patsy Kelly and Ralph Bellamy. Uncredited but in an acknowledged key role is The Dakota, a famed gothic confection at 72nd and Central Park West. The Dakota starred as the Bramford, and exteriors were shot there. Because filming was not allowed inside, its interiors were recreated at Paramount. Significantly, the film begins and ends with aerial views of the building.

Roman Polanski deftly combined the trademark elements of his style (atmospheric location, psychological distress, irony, dark humor, an endangered and isolated protagonist), his penchant for meticulous craftsmanship and the high gloss afforded by Hollywood to create a masterpiece that has developed a legend all its own over the years...