Rosemary’s Baby – Film Review
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Rosemary’s Baby
Film review
by Mischel Figusch
Director: Roman Polanski
Cast overview:
Mia Farrow
Rosemary Woodhouse
John Cassavetes
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Guy Woodhouse
Ruth Gordon
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Minnie Castevet
Sidney Blackmer
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Roman Castevet
Maurice Evans
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Edward Hutch Hutchins
Ralph Bellamy
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Dr. Abraham Sapirstein
Victoria Vetri
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Terry Gionoffrio (as Angela Dorian)
Patsy Kelly
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Laura-Louise
Elisha Cook Jr.
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Mr. Nicklas (as Elisha Cook)
Emmaline Henry
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Elise Dunstan
Charles Grodin
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Dr. C.C. Hill
Hanna Landy
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Grace Cardiff
Phil Leeds
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Dr. Shand (as Philip Leeds)
DUrville Martin
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Diego
Hope Summers
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Mrs. Gilmore
Summary
“Rosemary’s Baby is an eerie gothic film about a young couple who move into an old large apartment in New York and plan to have children soon. During a dinner invitation their friend “Hutch” he warns them of the building’s notorious and bad reputation for witchcraft and cannibalism.
While Rosemary is in the basement’s laundry room on her first visit there, she meets Terry Gionoffrio who lives with the Castevets on the 7th floor. She displays her mysterious, smelly and noxious “good luck charm” which is filled with tannis-root given her by Mrs. Castevet.
One evening when Guy and Rosemary return from the city they find a bloody unexpected scene in front of their apartment building: Terry has suicidally jumped out of the window.
One day Minnie Castevet visits Rosemary in her apartment with a friend of hers and presents her a tannis-root-charm, the one worn by Terry.
In an unusual circumstance, Guy soon acquires an acting role – the actor who had been chosen over him for a key role in a play is unexpectedly and suddenly going blind.
One evening when the young couple decided to make a baby, they are being interrupted by Minnie who brings them two mousse au chocolates. Soon after the consumption of it (she didn’t eat all of it, but pretended to) she looses her consciousness and Guy brings her to bed. In her dream-like sleep Guy begins to have sexual contact to her but then his appearance changes into a grotesque beast-like figure resembling the devil.
The next morning, Rosemary questions mysterious scratches she finds on the side of her body. She is appalled that Guy admits making love to her while she was passed out. He said that he didn’t want to miss the night.
Rosemary learns that she is being pregnant. She changes her gynaecologist and he, Abe Sapirstein advises her to drink a daily, herbal mixture made by her neighbour Minnie Castevet.
Soon she suffers sharp pains in her stomach and is afraid of losing the baby. One day Hutch visits her again and reveals that he’s rather sceptical about her good luck charm.
After Hutch is introduced briefly to Rosemarys strange neighbour Roman Castevet, Rosemary explains how the Castevets are close to Guy and have become parent figures for him. As Hutch leaves, he cant locate one of his gloves that he put in their closet when he arrived. Later, he calls and sets up a rendezvous with Rosemary at the Time-Life Building in downtown Manhattan. At the appointed time the next morning (about two weeks before Christmas), it is unusual that Hutch doesnt appear. A phone call to his