It was kinda fun in a necrophile sort of way

This was published in the Volume 69, Issue 9, Oct. 16-22, 2008 issue of the Fulcrum. —D.D.

Rosemary's Baby (Roman Polanski, 1968)
**** (A)

Mia Farrow as Rosemary Woodhouse portraits one of the most paranoid and alienated women in motherhood in cinema. A good-hearted wife to Guy Woodhouse (John Cassavetes) in 1960 New York once pregnant gets entangled in a series of sinister coincidences. Ambiguously portrayed in a feverish nightmare or during a satanic ritual Rosemary gets raped by satan. Much of the film’s intensity derives from Polanski style, the claustrophobia of the appartment, the over bearing dark ancient building, the eerie decor and the unnerving tone fills each frame of the film with dread, grief and apprehension. With an adhering use of expressionistic actors the film sets the mood for an intense fright. A perfect companion before Halloween, show up!-David Davidson
(Bytowne Cinema, 324 Rideau Street, Monday October 20th, 9:05)

***

Selected Conversations with Innovative and Influential Creative Figures in Film, TV and Digital Media at Pinewood Dialogues and more Jonathan Rosenbaum.