Cursed Films 2: Rosemary’s Baby
A rare partial misfire from the Shudder franchise, as it makes no mention of one of the literal monsters in the room.
Warning: there are a lot of rape and murder mentions in this episode and recap, so reader beware.
- Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures
Steeped in Evil
This movie is soaked, absolutely drenched, in evil. The Exorcist, the much more classic and beloved film, is not a similar film. Where Blatty’s work ends hopeful, this is all dread and acceptance of evil as the outcome.
The Plot
Rosemary’s husband makes a literal deal with the devil, choosing to let his wife get sexually assaulted by-then give birth to-Satan’s son. He moves his fragile wife into an apartment complex filled with elderly Satanists for the assault to take place, then for the tenants to watch over her. They gaslight the mother to be, killing her friends that get in the way. Only when the baby is born is Rosemary certain of her baby’s parentage. Although the baby is never seen by the audience, Rosemary does see.
The Curses
Deaths and illnesses abound around those involved with this film.
Eerily echoing the film, composer Christopher Komeda died of a mysteriously obtained brain hematoma.
William Castle, gimmick film guru, and all around kind man, became ill after producing the film. When undergoing surgery, he swore that he saw the devil reflected in a scalpel. His wife suffered early onset Alzheimer’s, and he lost a daughter and a granddaughter. His surviving daughter Terry wants nothing to do with the film, even going so far as to keep a humidor topped with a gold and ruby devil’s head, gifted to her late father by Mia Farrow, out of her sight and in storage.
Anton LaVey
The late Anton LaVey was involved in Rosemary’s baby-if only apocryphally. Rumor has it that that Anton, founder of the Church of Satan, was an advisor, and played the devil himself in the rape scene. A book by temporary Satanist Sammy Davis Jr. is featured throughout the movie in the background.
The Beatles
The Beatles are woven inextricably with Rosemary’s Baby. Mia Farrow, who plays the movie’s namesake Rosemary, attended retreats in India with The Beatles when they were writing the White Album. A white Volkswagen Beetle features prominently in the background.
The apartment building featured in exterior shots of the apartments Rosemary lives in was the home of John Lennon.
In the film, a woman jumps to her death, landing on the street outside.
In 1981, John Lennon was murdered outside the apartments in almost the exact same spot.
Which leads us to “Helter Skelter”…
Sharon Tate
- Photo Credit: Wikipedia
Sharon Tate was an incredibly beautiful and talented actress. She met and married Rosemary’s Baby director Roman Polanski in 1968.
On the evening of August 9, 1969, the 26 year old actress, along with four of her friends and her unborn child (Sharon was 8 ½ months pregnant), were slaughtered by some of Charles Manson’s followers at their California rental home.
Charles Manson was obsessed with The Beatles’ song “Helter Skelter” (from the White Album), and used the song as the name of his plan for world domination.
Tate was murdered a second time in the tabloids-who blamed her death on her alleged lifestyle, and not a group of brain-washed, drugged out losers.
The Monster Not Mentioned
Roman Polanski had a horrible early life, no one denies this. His mother was killed by the Nazis; his father survived them.
But he rose above his grief to become a famous director, and marry one of the most beautiful women in Hollywood.
After Tate and their unborn son were murdered, one can allow for Polanski to grieve.
One could allow for the director to go a little off the deep end for a time.
What one cannot do, is allow said adult to drug and rape a 13 year old girl at a party.
Shudder completely leaves Roman Polanski’s criminal activity out of this episode. The episode brings up what a co-star does(shoots her husband) after Rosemary’s Baby, but omits this major detail about its director.
Roman Polanski fled the country instead of going to prison. He cannot set foot on American soil(or any country that may extradite him) without being taken into custody.
Final Thoughts
Polanski’s actions took him from a grieving man and A-list director to a pedophile. Anyone without his fame would be despised by most of Hollywood-but not all. I mean…we’re living in the age of Harvey Weinstein and the documentary An Open Secret.
A big chunk of Hollywood seems to revere these criminals, or at least keep the abuse under wraps-much like Rosemary’s husband-to keep their fame and money.
As much as I hate this movie, its director, and the fact that Shudder makes no mention of Polanski’s crime, this episode should be viewed, just to see the seedy underbelly of Hollywood, and the twists and turns that enabled this film to capture it.
Rosemary’s Baby is available on DVD, and some streaming services.
Cursed Films is available on Shudder
