Product: Rosemary's Baby (El Bebe de Rosemary) [ NON-USA FORMAT, NTSC, Reg.4 Import - Latin America ] (1968)
Rating: 5.0
POLANSKI'S MASTERPIECE
Considered very "with it" and uniquely horrifying upon its initial release in 1968, ROSEMARY'S BABY indeed still has the facility to give viewers the shivers. For some reason, witches seemed truly wicked when seen in the prosaic surroundings of a modern New York apartment (filming was at the legendary Dakota where John Lennon was shot in 1980). Polanski brilliantly establishes the atmosphere of evil without indulging in nasty excesses; thusly viewers were (and still are) held spellbound throughout by the pervading malevolence. Farrow gives a remarkably honest and realistic performance and her appearance is at once beguiling and eventually elfin-ish (her haircut caused quite a stir at the time). The unique Ruth Gordon so impressed audiences with her portrayal of Minnie, the eccentric modern-day witch who lives next door that she won herself an AA. ("I can't tell ya how encouragin' a thing like this is at my age" she told the academy). Sidney Blackmer is right as her "warlock" husband and there's Hope Summers (Andy Griffith) and the great comic veteran Patsy Kelly in support. Considering most films from this era (i.e. circa 1967-1972) date badly, this flick stands on its own-its a truly frightening work of art.