Plot: What’s it about?
Rosemary Woodhouse (Zoe Saldana) and her husband Guy (Patrick J. Adams) have just left their lives in America behind, moving across the world to Paris, France. Guy plans to further his education and hopefully his professional future, so the movie is an important one for the young couple. While the trip was motivated by Guy’s interests, Zoe is pleased that she at least has a friend already in Paris, Julie (Christina Cole). When she goes to visit her friend, Rosemary is the victim of a purse snatcher, though she is able to recover her purse and then some. When she gets back her purse, she also finds a wallet and is determined to return it to the proper owner. As it happens, the owner lives in a plush apartment complex and right off the bat, Marguax (Carole Bouquet) loves Rosemary for bringing the wallet back. Marguax and her husband quickly strike up a bond with the new in town couple, even offering them an apartment at a greatly reduced rate. Soon it seems like everything is coming up aces for them, but when Rosemary gets pregnant, she starts to suspect that not all is as it seems. After some detective work, she is convinced that a dark force is at work and her baby could be in danger. But is Rosemary really picking up on a evil plot that involves her family, or is she simply falling victim to unfamiliarity and paranoia?
Given that both the novel and feature film adaptation of Rosemary’s Baby are highly acclaimed, this mini-series had an uphill battle from the start. The clear goal of this version is to update and modernize the story and as such, the creators took a lot of liberties with the source material. So if you’re after a faithful take on the novel or movie, this mini-series isn’t going to be for you. A number of things have been changed this time around, some minor and others not so much. While the location change offers some good potential, some of the other alterations aren’t as wise. The changes made to some of the characters impact the story in a negative way, causing them not to work as well within the narrative. No attempts are made to mask what is really going on, or who we shouldn’t trust, it is all so obvious in this version. That robs the story of so much tension and given that psychological drama fuels Rosemary’s Baby, that isn’t good news at all. On the plus side, the production values are quite good and Zoe Saldana turns in a rock solid effort as the central character. In the end, this mini-series fails to capture the raw tension and paranoia soaked atmosphere needed, so fans will want to stick with the novel or the feature film versions.
Video: How’s it look?
Rosemary’s Baby is presented in 1.78:1 widescreen. As expected, this mini-series looks sharp and crisp here. While perhaps not as three dimensional as the best high definition transfers, this one still rocks great detail and depth. The fine detail is superb, so even the tiniest of visual touches is visible. I found the colors to be natural and bright, while contrast performs as expected. No real problems surface either, so this is just a terrific visual presentation.
Audio: How’s it sound?
A DTS HD 5.1 soundtrack is included and while the sound design is solid, the audio isn’t memorable. I would have liked more surround presence use to enhance the tension and suspense, but that is minimal here. A thriller can benefit greatly from a well crafted soundtrack, so I feel this is a missed opportunity for sure. The basics are all in order and the mini-series sounds fine, but I think it could have been so much more effective. This disc also includes English and Spanish subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
- Fear is Born: The Making of Rosemary’s Baby – A brief EPK with some behind the scenes interviews with the cast and crew as well as some of the motivation as to why they remade this classic.
- Grand Guignol: Parisian Production Design – A feature showcasing the film’s magnificent production design.
