An Urban Nightmare

Rating: 9/10 (14 September 2019)

One of the rare standout scenarios in art: the supernatural in the big city. In the hustle and bustle of the big metropolis things that go bump at night and the shadows of the unknown are drowned away by the lights, the sounds and the sheer energy of electricity and life. But when the primal, ancient, hidden dimensions of myth and the dark side emerge in such an environment the terror can be even more horrifying and all too real.
With it's vintage color and hazy, nauseous vibe "Rosemary's Baby" oozes with its time. Nudity, drugs, flashbacks, illusions and the occult are the themes that swirl amidst the mounting suspense with New York City as the looming backdrop. A nostalgic glimpse into late-'60s New York as the city passes in a time capsule comveying the fashion, things, and the mood and the vibe of the age. A ditzy and luminous Mia Farrow is the blonde top who's the beacon of innocence railing against age and tradition. "The Trial" as supernatural, the film disturbingly unsettles as it tensely conjures the rising madness that ensues when sanity is gone and one is left with oneself and infinity. Moving at times in glacial obsolescence, the film is chilling in its monotony. One of the definitive and landmark horror films - modernity and a scream in the dark.