Product: Rosemary's Baby (El Bebe de Rosemary) [ NON-USA FORMAT, NTSC, Reg.4 Import - Latin America ] (1968)
Rating: 5.0
Polanski's Understated, Skillful Tour De Force
The very elements that made "Rosemary's Baby" such an epic of understated suspense, escalating terror and subtle intrigue are the qualities that substantially undermine the DVD (unless you haven't seen the movie previously). I first saw this film many, many years ago and was nearly catatonic with fear at Polanski's masterful tale. It was certainly the director's finest hour as a filmmaker. However, I found my second viewing (via the newly-released DVD) somewhat of a letdown. I already knew the storyline, so the effects of Polanski's singular talents were significantly muted this time around. What DOES make this DVD worth the price of admission, though, are the extra features: 1) Interviews with Polanski, Richard Sylbert and Bob Evans; and 2) a "making of" featurette that delightfully showcases the warm and friendly rapport enjoyed by the director and Mia Farrow (Rosemary). The movie was filmed in the waning days of the famous "Summer of Love" in 1967, and the era's innocence and exuberance are sweetly captured here. Polanski's wondrously complex and contradictory personality is apparent - as is his childlike zeal for his craft. (Robert Towne ("Chinatown") has called him a "maddening delight" - and that's an apt depiction.) All in all, "Baby" was the work that justifiably propelled Polanski into the limelight - and it remains his most fully realized work.