Screenshots from Rosemary's Baby (dir. Roman Polanski/1968)
Pregnant women sometimes look at their men as if to say, "What did you do to me?" Rosemary (Mia Farrow), the Omaha-born girl who's now living in Manhattan, has reason to wonder, and this satirical gothic thriller, written and directed by Roman Polanski, from Ira Levin's novel, is told from her point of view. Rosemary's actor-husband (John Cassavetes) conspires with a coven, drugs her, and mates her with Satan, in exchange for a Broadway hit. It's genuinely funny, yet it's also
scary, especially for young women: it plays on their paranoid vulnerabilities. The queasy and the grisly are mixed with its
entertaining hipness. (It's probably more fun for women who are past their childbearing years.) Mia Farrow is enchanting in her fragility: she's just about perfect for her role. And the darkly handsome Cassavetes is ideal as the narcissist who makes the deal for a clovenhoofed infant. [Pauline Kael in 5001 Nights at the Movies, 1991]