Rosemarys Baby Digital

Just What I Thought It Was

Zoe Saladona was a great choice for a leading actress.

Really enjoyed this retelling of a classic... well put together and acted... do not expect a remake or the novel but the heart of both told in a new story

The major problem with the story is that we know it. If you dont know the story of Rosemary Baby stop reading reviews right now and go watch it and I would suggest the newer version to newer audience. Pardon my sacrilege. Having said that, placing the story in France doesnt really add anything to the tale. With the surprise element gone and not having to figure out the mystery, the film needs an A game to distinguish itself. Unfortunately this film doesnt get interesting until after the pregnancy. Like most made for TV offerings, the acting was uneven. Zoe Saldana was acceptable. Patrick J. Adams was bland.

Dont waste your time and money on this remake. Its no comparison to the original Polanski film with Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes and Ruth Gordon. This one was Made for TV and that shows throughout. Production values reveal the budget and shooting schedule constraints in everything from set, props, lighting and costuming to visual and audio special effects. Polanskis film has tight pacing and is compact without sacrificing the story. The result is well-paced and builds suspense to the denouement in the final scene. By comparison, this remake reduces the suspense to near zero, replacing it with unnecessary action and gratuitous violence, the lack of which added to the psychological power and horror achieved in the original. The producers, screenwriters and director completely missed the boat. Rosemarys Baby is a psychological horror story, NOT an action or physical one. Pacing is ruined by the two factors that destroy it in very nearly every Made for TV movie: length thats bloated to fit the time slot(s), and attempts to time plot cliffhangers for every commercial break. Among the worst of all is timing of the overall story for the split between the two parts. As a result, pacing is inconsistent with a story muddled by extraneous fluff. The lack of psychological suspense combined with a pacing that runs in fits and starts for commercial breaks and the two-part split in a story bogged down by unnecessary bloat eventually meanders its way to an anti-climactic final scene. Its an ending that was completely predictable well beforehand and has none of the psychological shock value the 1968 original contains in its denouement. The purpose of this Made for TV remake was ratings sweeps. They network only needed to con the TV viewing audience into watching it one time to achieve that, and it had all manner of hype beforehand. The first part had ratings that OK but nothing to brag about, as they didnt have the desired boost. It showed in the second part several days later with very mediocre ratings as substantial fewer viewers didnt bother to watch it. I recorded it on one of my TiVos and watched it later when I could skip through the commercials. At the end I extremely disappointed, felt it was time utterly wasted, and promptly erased it (versus downloading it to disc for future viewing). That its out on DVD and Blu-ray now is beyond me, but I suppose there are those that can be hoodwinked into buying it on disc if they werent conned into watching it when it was originally broadcast.

Some movies shouldnt be remade no matter how tempting it is to see Zoe Saldana in her underwear. But, I guess after 46 years NBC figured why not? There is a whole new generation out there, perhaps two, who have no awareness of the original movie (1968), or Ira Levins book (1966) that it was based on. So, we get this glamorous redux, set in Paris no less, with the major characters bearing the same names. I guess Castevet sounds French, no? Of course Guy and Rosemary are Americans in Paris, who soon find themselves enjoying the good graces of the very handsome Castevets. In an interview before the premier, Zoe said it took a great deal of cajones to go back to the classic and give it a bold new look. That would have been fine if the two-part mini-series offered a daring new interpretation. Instead, all we get is a reshuffling of the narrative and characters like a pack of tarot cards, bringing the story up to the 21st century. It seems Zoe was the driving force behind this movie, making it her baby, so to speak, dragging in her siblings as co-producers. Agnieszka Holland appeared to be there to steer things, not direct the movie. It didnt strike me as her style at all. Perhaps the most jarring aspect is the lack of humor, which is what made the original story so disarming. What we get here is a very earnest film with very earnest performances. The devil is made manifest right from the start, so there is no mystery, let alone suspense here. Rather than a doddering coven of old witches, we get immaculately dressed middle-aged witches living in one of the most exclusive addresses in Paris, the Chimera. The building itself looks straight out of the Art Nouveau era. There isnt even a grimy basement where Rosemary first met Terry doing laundry and learned about the Castavets. Instead, we see a woman, apparently of some ancient Turkish descent, jump off the balcony, and Rosemary spends the rest of the movie trying to figure out why. We know this is going to be a sinister movie, and have no trust in the Castevets. Recasting guy as an English professor and writer also wasnt a very wise move. Getting tenure is not something you just happen into, especially at his tender age. Being an actor was perfect, as all it took was a lucky break, which Guy got when a rival actor was all the sudden struck blind. Guy was on his way. Instead, we get a gruesome scene where the apparently much better qualified woman (judging by the stack of books she carries) loses her mind, stabbing the interviewer, with the scene ending in a bloody heap, literally. Where is the wit and cajones here? Of course, young Guy (woodenly played by Patrick J. Adams) gets the job, thanks to Roman who is a professor at the same university and has his connections. The Woodhouses move from their cramped teachers dorm to the Chimera, right into the waiting arms of the Castevets. The creative juices soon start to flow. The good conscience is played by Christina Cole as Julie. She is best friends with Zoe and apparently Guys former lover. Or, was it an act of indiscretion at some point? I wasnt exactly sure. She is an aspiring chef in Paris and gets together with Rosemary in cooking class from time to time. Julie is an amalgamation of several characters from the original story. She senses something is amiss during Ros pregnancy and gets her another doctor, who has the benefit of ultrasound to see the devil within. You know things are not going to end well for Julie. With Hutch out, Zoe or Agnieszka decided to create a police commissioner, Msr. Fontaine, to act as the second voice of conscience. He is well played by Olivier Rabourdin. Youre not quite sure whether he is part of the coven or not. One of the few mysteries in this movie. Zoe comes to put all her faith in him, but it is a foregone conclusion how this film will turn out. The poor commissioner doesnt stand a chance against the likes of the Castevets. Roman and Margaux are quite a departure from the original, but it was a master stroke to cast Carole Bouquet as Margaux. She is ravishing and devious, orchestrating events like the devil herself, although as in the original we find out that Roman is the latest reincarnation of the devil, a lineage he has carried forth in Rosemary. No real surprise here, but Jason Isaacs fits the role well. So, yes, this movie ends the same as did the first, otherwise it wouldnt be Rosemarys Baby.

So says the female protagonist. Terrible letdown vs. the 1968 original. Reinforces the cliche that remakes are not a good idea. Nice Paris locales cannot save movie from trite plot and screenplay not well adapted to the novel. The scariest scene is of the apartment handyman scrabbling down a hallway on all fours like a dog.

Good

I dont know if anyone remembers or knows of NBCs Sunday Night At The Movies series that ran from 1981 to 2000 but when the first half of this first aired on Sunday night on May 11th, I kind of felt like they were going a bit retro and I really enjoyed that. Sorry, Im a big nostalgia fan! This 2 part mini-series remakes, stars Zoe Saldana as the soon to be trouble mother, Rosemary, while Patrick J. Adams stars as her husband, Guy. In this remake, Rosemary and Guy move from New York City to Paris, France and rent out an admirable apartment, looking to start their lives over together. Soon after they find comfort in locals and neighbors Roman and Margaux Castevet who become very involved in their lives. Rosemary ends up becoming pregnant, while Guys career as a writer, elevates. Meanwhile, Guys co-worker, Julie as well as Margaux begin spending a lot of time with Rosemary and Margaux informs Rosemary that herbs and holistics will help with her pregnancy. After Margaux performs a spell on soup that she was preparing for Rosemary, Rosemarys health declines in the worst way and she ends up in the hospital. After Rosemary miraculously recovers, she becomes suspicious of her doctor and the Castevets and feels that theres more to this evil French couple than theyre letting on. After Rosemary discovers a shocking revelation about the apartment theyre living in, its past, and an evil secret about Roman Castevet, she pleads with Guy to leave France but he thinks its all in her mind. Along the way, Rosemarys closest peers who get too closely bonded with Rosemary to try and help her, are met with unfortunate and gruesome deaths. Once Rosemary puts the pieces together, she realizes what the Castevets are up to and how her soon to be born baby is linked to Satan himself. Overall: Despite what the negative critics may say, this mini-series remake was a treat to watch. Unlike the movie, this setting takes place outside of the US and in France, which adds an overall exciting and different element with the characters involved in this. Because both 2 hour episodes equal 4 hours, you may tend to lose a bit of focus at times but its not long before it grabs your attention again as the plot thickens and so do our characters. In addition, I was also expecting there to be quite a bit of controversy about Saldana playing the main character as Rosemary due to racial reasons, but fortunately, there were none....that I know of. Overall, youll have to build up the courage to keep yourself watching this for 4 hours, otherwise you may lose interest in it. I cant speak for everyone, but I truly enjoyed this remake of the original and cant wait for it to be released on DVD

very good really enjoyed the movie