ROSEMARY’S BABY Returns to NYC for 50th Anniversary
Just in time for its 50th anniversary, writer/director Roman Polanski’s landmark horror movie Rosemary’s Baby arrives at NYC’s IFC Center for a one-week engagement, Friday, August 24 through Thursday, August 30. Every fright fan owes it to themselves to see this classic on the big screen.
Polanski’s first American film revolutionized and legitimized the horror genre in the eyes of critics and audiences alike when it opened to lines around the block in 1968. Based on Ira Levin’s best-selling novel, Rosemary’s Baby remains one of the greatest horror films ever. In the now legendary story, waif Mia Farrow stars as a young woman unwittingly serving as the expectant mother to Satan’s child. The movie shot outside NYC’s famous Dakota, home to scream star Boris Karloff, as well as musician John Lennon, who famously lost his life in the building’s courtyard in 1980.
I’ve seen Rosemary’s Baby countless times, and it always casts a spell over me. I always find something new to latch onto when I watch it again. Of course, the writing, direction and superb performances go without saying. Co-star Ruth Gordon even took home an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. For my umpteenth viewing this past week, two new things stood out for me. First, Gordon’s onscreen husband, Sidney Blackmer, really holds his own against the tiny spitfire. Gordon may get all the laughs as Rosemary’s busybody’s neighbor, but its Blackmer as Roman Castevet, the coven leader, who oozes true reptilian evil. Roman is the most menacing character in the film, though he hides his villainy well. Blackmer’s career goes back to the silent era and he acted alongside some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, in addition to work on TV and Broadway, where he won a Tony.
Seeing Rosemary’s Baby once more, the musical score burrowed into my brain for the next few days. Farrow’s own singing serves as a haunting accent to composer Krzysztof (a.k.a. Christopher) Komeda’s dreamy “Rosemary’s Lullaby” heard during the credits. Though Komeda previously collaborated with Polanski on Knife in the Water and The Fearless Vampire Killers, Rosemary’s Baby would be the one to give audiences and mothers nightmares forever. Komeda’s music drew inspiration from films of the French noir and New Wave periods, as opposed to traditional fear flicks. His instrumentation has jazz inflections, with the results generating unease and rising tension. Tragically, a fall from a cliff cut Komeda’s promising career short at age 38.
You’ll also find much to love in Rosemary’s Baby, and there’s no better time to discover—or rediscover—it than during its 50th anniversary year and at the IFC Center, which will be playing the movie on flawless DCP.
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