What is the horror genre’s fascination with the occult and Satan?
Christianity is such a widespread religion and diverse one at that. So many people around the world believe in this duality of good versus evil. We believe in God, a righteous and loving one who guides us away from the darkness of evil. Satan is the portrayed villain of so many religious belief systems. This fallen angel and dark figure strikes fear in countless people. There have been plenty of iconic visuals of the lord of darkness including in the media. That read skin…the horns…the hooves. What a picture? This iconic representation has been fully realized in plenty of forms of media. Whether it is Legend, South Park, Tenacious D, Angel Heart, The Witch, or countless others, Satan has become a common presence. With such an easily hated antagonist, it certainly is no surprise that these types of films have become so popular.
But it isn’t just about Satan himself, right?
The cult-like worship of his power has become increasingly more popular in the film as well. The Satanic Panic was a widespread occurrence in the United States during the 1980s when a return to traditional family values came back during the Reagan administration. What did a Satanist look like to people at that time? They probably had long hair (for men) and tattoos and piercings. They are draped in black with logos for metal bands all over them (Black Sabbath, AC DC, Metallica). Nothing can possibly be eviler than a bunch of metal fans, right? But this certainly was the perspective. You have cults and covens in so many different horror films nowadays and even have shows that spin the whole perspective to worshipping Satan (The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina).
But this all had to start somewhere, right?
Over a decade prior to this Satanic Panic, film audiences witnessed a paranoia-driven horror-thriller called Rosemary’s Baby. Even before The Exorcist became a box office juggernaut, Roman Polanski adapted this chilling novel for the big screen. This film focuses on a New York socialite named Rosemary Woodhouse who moves into this big old building with her actor husband, Guy. When they move in, they meet a seemingly sweet and caring couple next door, Roman and Minnie Castevet. This older couple begins to care for and support the Woodhouse, especially once Rosemary becomes pregnant. They help identify a doctor, they provide “lucky charms”, and general oversight. They are nice of them, right? But this all seems so strange. People start ending up either dead, deformed or in comas, the red flags start firing on all cylinders. But is this all just in Rosemary’s head? This horror film still delivers great suspense and tension around every corner.
But let’s think about what we have discussed already, shall we?
Who are the Satanists we know? Young and misguided people blasting metal music and dressing in black and leather. That is what we have been told. But that is not the narrative that Rosemary’s Baby tells. We see a nice old couple that worships at the altar of the desolate one. By the end of the film, you experience a room full of seemingly “normal” exclaiming “HAIL SATAN” with wondrous glee. That moment must be one of the strangest and most unnerving scenes I have ever experienced in a film. But that subversion of expectations works so well and delivers an incredible shock. In 2021, it is so easy to see where the film is going because we have seen so many films since that have derived their whole narratives from this story.
Can you imagine what it would have been like to watch this in 1968?
Even hearing anyone saying those two words together would have been shocking enough. But these are high class and respected people in society. There are doctors and other professionals as part of this group and not the youth in the counterculture at the time. The audience doesn’t even experience the presence of Satan besides some clawed hands moving about the body of Rosemary during what she perceived as a “nightmare”. Polanski was even so bold that he didn’t even show the child at the end. How confident of a filmmaker do you have to be to show such restraint? This film is nothing like the spiritual successors that have spawned over the course of decades to come after it.
That is an interesting aspect to investigate as well…what did it mean to be a horror film in 1968?
What we experience most of the time today are a few types. We get slasher flicks like the Halloween and Scream franchises that focus more on murders and kills instead of the atmosphere. There is certainly plenty of supernatural horror around us today, but they are more concerned about terrifying creatures and jump scares. But then you have a studio like A24. They still focus on the horror that is more about atmosphere and subversion of societal expectations. We have films like Hereditary, The Lighthouse, Midsommar, and Lamb that are about deeper ideas at the core but build a cinematic world of tension and foreboding atmosphere that spark real terror. That is the approach Polanski took with Rosemary’s Baby.
What are the standard horror elements we do get in the film though?
The only scene that “feels” like what mainstream horror fans would think of as horror would be the Satanic rape sequence. The lighting shifts and the framing is layered in dreamlike visuals as giant scaled and clawed hands rip through Rosemary’s skin as we experience close-up shots of her eyes (full of fear). This scene is quite terrifying and unnerving in SO many ways. But besides this, Polanski uses tension and suspense over the course of the film’s 137-minute runtime to crawl underneath the audience’s skin.
How does Polanski create such tension that sustains a slow-burning film with a plus-sized runtime?
There is a raw and documentarian feel of the camera work in the film. The handheld camera gives the audience a sense of being in on the action and seeing up close the fear, paranoia, and frustration that overcomes Rosemary throughout the film. The film lives and dies on secrets and leaves Rosemary (along with the audience) in the dark. There are great moments of restraint throughout the film that show Polanski’s great handle of filmmaking and manipulating his audience. We are going through Rosemary’s perspective and there are quite a few times where conversations between other characters are left JUST off-screen. They are close enough to be happening but far enough to leave us all in the dark. This frustrates Rosemary and the audience as she can tell something is going on but not enough to say something.
One of the best moments of filmmaking in the whole film comes when the “reveal” of Rosemary’s baby. The wide-eyed shocked reaction speaks volumes to the look of the child.
We never actually see the child but the react shot from Mia Farrow (Rosemary) is all that is needed.
Rosemary’s comment about the eyes is just as telling as well. The design of the baby’s bassinet is just the creepy icing on the cake. The film is devoid of jump scares and cheap thrillers. Mystery, tension, and clever filmmaking are the hallmarks of classic horror.
But what really elevates a horror film to the next level?
Emotion and connections to our characters. Farrow gives a raw performance that has every emotion boiling to the surface. She channels her frustrations at moments where she lashes out. We see her weakened and vulnerable as her abusers gain control. As mentioned before, her facial expressions are the key elements that truly make the more horrific scenes work so well. Farrow is certainly one of the figureheads of the long legacy of strong female performances in horror (Jodie Foster, Ellen Burstyn, Toni Collette, and Florence Pugh to name a few). John Cassavetes is Guy and uses his reputation for natural acting to play this character who slides between charming, controlling, and downright pathetic in his shame. There are a few frames in the film with Cassavetes standing looking like he just ran over a puppy (full of shame and guilt as he avoids eye contact with Rosemary and the audience). Ruth Gordon is that grandma-like figure who is always pushing food on you and trying to take care of you (no matter how little you need those things). She portrays Minnie Castevet with so much genuine energy that you easily fall for her controlling behavior that is so obviously abusive in hindsight. Sidney Blackmet is Roman Castevet and plays this old man as a talker and sweet presence…even when he screams “Hail Satan ” with such glee. Special shoutout to Patsy Kelly who portrays one of the Satanists who is SO infuriating in her role that she might just be too good at it.
Along with some strong and genuine performance, what helps add depth and meaning to Polanski’s classic film?
The deeply rooted themes of control and abuse are seen at every moment. When you strip away the supernatural and Satanic elements of the film, Rosemary’s Baby is at the core a story of abuse and gaslighting. Everyone (except for her friend Hutch) is lying to Rosemary and trying to control and mislead her. Guy just might be the worst of the bunch. This is his own wife he is offering up to be raped and forced to conceive the spawn of Satan. His motivation? To get acting gigs. What is worse? A group of true believers doing a dark and twisted ceremony because they truly believe it is the right thing to do…or a man who sells out and abuses his wife further his acting career? To me, that is an easy one to answer. The most disturbing scene of the film is post-nightmarish rape, Rosemary wakes to find horrible scratches all over her. What does Guy say? He admits to marital rape in which she was incapacitated. Did he really do it? No…but he was perfectly fine saying he did so he could gaslight his wife and offer up her body. Minnie is so controlling and incredibly pushy at every moment. She refuses no for an answer and is constantly lying to her so-called “friend”. This endless abuse is just as disturbing as the spawn of Satan that Rosemary is forced to give birth to (even when she did not want to go to term).
These themes of control over women’s bodies are still at the forefront of our society.
I would hope that this film from 1968 was not so relevant today…but it sure is.
What a special kind of film Rosemary’s Baby is?
This is a slow-burning masterpiece full of suspense, meaningful themes, and powerful performance.
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Polanski showed that he had an incredible handle on filmmaking (even if he is not a good human being away from the camera, to say the least). If a viewer wants to see what horror can be without the cheap jump scares that have defined modern horror, check this out. Tis the season, right? Demon children, Satan, and cults make for a perfect Halloween cinematic experience.
