Not-Very-Bright Bitches: Roman Polanski's Rosemary’s Baby
One of my favorite horror films is Rosemary’s Baby, Roman Polanski’s 1968 satanic pregnancy horror film starring Mia Farrow and John Cassavetes. The film is the middle entry in Polanski’s unofficial 'Apartment Trilogy,' made between 1965’s Repulsion and 1976’s The Tenant. While the horror elements are visceral and terrifying, the film works as a metaphor for women’s rights and the general unease of pregnancy. Grounded by the outstanding work of Mia Farrow and Polanski’s measured direction, Rosemary’s Baby is remarkably effective, even after almost fifty years.
Based on the novel Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin, the film centers on a young newlywed couple: struggling actor Guy Woodhouse (Cassavetes) and his meek, waifish wife Rosemary (Farrow). While apartment hunting, the couple comes across The Bramford and fall in love with a spacious, old-looking but charming unit within. Once they move in, their lives are intruded upon by the pushy, excessively kind Minnie (Oscar-winner Ruth Gordon) and Roman Castevet (Sidney Blackmer). Rosemary and Guy decide to get pregnant, but Rosemary starts to wonder if she was impregnated by something not human. And she suspects that Castevets are behind whatever is happening to her body.
Levin has stated that this film is one of the most faithful book-to-film adaptations that Hollywood ever produced. Polanski had never done an adaptation before this film and didn’t know that he could take liberties with the source novel. Yet the film does feel cinematic because of the expressiveness of the direction, the urgency in the performances, and the unforgettable production design. Rosemary’s Baby creates an atmosphere of dread and paranoia, bringing its audience into Rosemary’s nervous perspective. The mounting suspicion and doubt that Rosemary endures, not to forget her powerful but indefinable physical ailments, make an impact on the viewer.
Rosemary, sick of the elderly new friends her husband has made, throws a party for her old friends. She finally has some kind ears to tell her problems to, and the women tell her to listen to her body. They literally lock Guy out of the room to give Rosemary the advice she needs to hear. Guy later calls them “not very bright bitches,” and Rosemary starts to push back against Guy and the Castevets’ interference in her pregnancy. This film came out in 1968, in the beginning of second wave feminism. Rosemary’s Baby presents itself as about Rosemary’s struggle for her own reproductive rights. She wants to take care of herself as she sees fit. She wants to choose her own doctor, and even her Vidal Sassoon haircut is symbolic of her taking control over her body.
Another terrific scene is Rosemary crossing the street into the traffic. The scene was not staged; Farrow just walked into the middle of the road. Polanski told her that every car would stop for a panicked pregnant woman. Rosemary then makes a call to her preferred Dr. Hill in a phone booth. Shown in tight close up, the scene is nerve-wrecking, but oddly funny. Mia Farrow is an exceptional actor, and her work in this film is striking. She dominates the film even when she is weakened or frightened. Because the film is so squarely seen through her eyes, we can feel her resolve when she is being oppressed.
John Cassavetes is horrifically dismissive and sinister as Guy. He provides an all-American villainy; the film suggests that Guy’s assumption of control and selfishness is prevalent in patriarchal America (after all, his name is Guy). Ruth Gordon and Sidney Blackmer are outstanding as this outlandish but insidious couple. By casting veteran actors in these parts, Polanski gives the film an unsettling vibe. We want to trust them, but something is off.
Rosemary’s Baby is such a piercing film with a stunning finale. The payoff of the movie is intense, and ends with a seductive ellipsis rather than a period or question mark. The film’s influences can still be seen, and the term "Rosemary’s baby” has entered the pop culture lexicon. mother!, the new film from Darren Aronofsky, is being marketed as a new take on the classic and I’m excited to see how that plays out.
