The movie doesn't make it perfectly clear & he's not at the end scene w/everyone else. It's more than likely he doesn't believe Rosemary's story & is convinced she's crazy/hysterical, but considering he didn't hesitate in letting Rosemary go with the people she warned him about, it kinda leaves it open for that interpretation. Perhaps I'm reading too much into it.
shareNo, Dr. Hill was not a member of the coven. If he was, there would be no need to send Rosemary to Sapirstein. Dr. Hill is skeptical of Rosemary when she comes to him but I think there is a part of him that believes she might be in danger, until she mentions that one of the coven members is Sapirstein, who is a well-known and prominent physician. At that point, Dr. Hill assumes she is just paranoid and doesn't believe anything she's saying.
shareHow come Dr. Hill doesn't believe Saperstein could be dangerous? He claims he's only met him once or twice. It's not like he knows Saperstein well enough to think there could be something to Rosemary's story & it might not all just be paranoia.
shareRosemary not liking Saperstein is one thing. It's another thing completely to run to a doctor after an urgent and hysterical phone call about a satanic plot in which they mean to deliver the son of satan through a Manhattan housewife. Try to see it from Hill's eyes. You'd think she was *beep* crazy too.
shareIt's mentioned that Saperstein is one of the most successful OB/GYN doctors in NYC. Although he may have only met him a couple of times, being in the same profession he is well aware of his reputation. He may also be wary of making him a potential enemy by potentially being seen as "siding" with Rosemary if he were to take her seriously. A doctor of Saperstein's reputation could probably do a lot to hurt the practice and reputation of a young doc like Dr. Hill who is in the early years of his career.
The bad news is you have houseguests. There is no good news.
I'm not entirely sure he was telling the truth in his claim; he may have known him better than that, or not at all, but hearing his name was enough to end any potential belief in what Rosemary was saying.
shareThe film states that Dr. Hill 'met Dr. Saperstein once or twice'. He doesn't say much else, but apparently he was well-regarded in the business so Dr. Hill believed HIM & not Rosemary.
It appeared that Hill was believing Rosemary UNTIL she mentioned the doc's name.
Once she did, he seemed to think she was indeed suffering from something: mental illness, pre-partum insanity, something.
I'd say this cloud is Cumulo Nimbus.
Didn't he discover America?
Penfold, shush.
i don't think he ever believed her, but he wanted a more credible authority other than her husband to justify breaking the medical confidentiality.
i mostly will not be able to answer your reply, since marissa mayer hacked my email, no notification
Dr. Hill's climb to prosperity was aided by Saperstein and company. Dr. Hill is part of the outer beneficiaries of the inner circle. Hence he betrays our Rosemary in the end.
shareHow do you know this? Is this part of Dr. Hill's back story that's not covered in the film? I haven't read the book yet so I don't know much of the character's back stories as explored in the book, but I am very interested in gettig to know them.
sharei have watched this movie plenty of times. There are plenty of hints along the way.
One such hint is this exchange between Hill and Rosemary (from an online transcript):
Hill: One more thing: we'd like another blood sample.
Rosemary: Oh, yes, of course. What for?
H: The nurse didn't take enough, so would you drop by and see her?
R: But I am pregnant, aren't I?
H: Oh, yes, it's just for blood samp... er, blood sugar.
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I've seen the film many times....and know the novel by heart, and there is absolutely NO indications of anything about Dr. Hill having anything to do with the coven.
Nor did the coven help Dr. Hill at all. If the coven liked Dr. Hill, they wouldn't have made Ro change doctors!
The above poster is trolling, I suspect.
I'd say this cloud is Cumulo Nimbus.
Didn't he discover America?
Penfold, shush.
there is absolutely NO indications of anything about Dr. Hill having anything to do with the coven.
Nor did the coven help Dr. Hill at all
Let's also not forget that this film takes place in the sixties, when "hysteria" was still believed to be a real diagnose-able medical condition. A famous male doctor would have loads more credibility than a middle-class young, pregnant woman. Rosemary's gender AND pregnancy adds to her lack of credibility in this context. Not to mention, it's a kind of hard-to-believe story unless you've been through what Rosemary has. I'm shocked Guy bought into it so quickly. Just goes to show how selfish he really is.
shareI thought that Dr. Hill needing that second blood test was suspicious.
shareNo, Hill wasn't part of the coven. The fact that Dr. Hill needed the second blood test probably suggests that he'd seen an indication that there was something off about Rosemary's pregnancy, but didn't want to concern her until he was more definite. That's why the Castavets were so insistent about sending Rosemary to Sapirstein; because Sapirstein was part of the coven and wouldn't warn her that something was different about her baby, unlike Hill. That's why Guy flipped out when Rosemary started talking about getting a second opinion. If Hill had been part of the Coven, Guy would have had no problem with telling her to go see Hill instead.
Charles Grodin himself has defended Hill's actions in one of his books. Apparently, he's had a few people confront him about betraying Rosemary. This woman comes to him saying that witches are conspiring against her and that among them is a well known and respected member of his profession. Who's word is he more likely to believe?
"The fact that Dr. Hill needed the second blood test probably suggests that he'd seen an indication that there was something off about Rosemary's pregnancy, but didn't want to concern her until he was more definite."
Good point, rocketXpert. That makes sense.
"Two more swords and I'll be Queen of the Monkey People." Roseanne
Who's word is he more likely to believe?So, a terrified pre-mother, who thinks she's surrounded by conspirators and feels she can't turn to anyone, should be betrayed by being turned over precisely to the people she fears.
There are two very clear indications that Dr Hill is not in the coven and you mentioned the first one given in the film; Guy's reaction to Rosemary's consideration of a second opinion. The other indication is when Saperstein surreptitiously palms the bottle of his demon baby medicine when he and Guy and Dr Shand are ushered into the room by Dr Hill to retrieve Rosemary. He doesn't want Dr Hill to find the bottle of pills.
shareI don't think he is. Rosemary's description of what has been happening sounds like the ravings of a disordered mind, and most doctors might well have assumed she was disturbed. (Indeed, the film could be interpreted in this way, with the supernatural elements just part of her paranoia or whatever.) Handing her over to the people she fears, though, is certainly morally questionable to me, but could indicate that Hill is just a normal-strength medical creep rather than part of the coven.
"Chicken soup - with a *beep* straw."
Hill was not involved. He just thought Rosemary was nuts.
shareDr. Hill was not part of any witch/devil plot.
What he was guilty of was allowing a terrified and possibly mentally unstable woman back into the custody of a man she risked her life to run away from...her husband.
It's important for the story that Hill is not part of the coven, because it shows how perfectly Machiavellian they are. They're so powerful that nobody suspects them. They know just how crazy you would sound if you told the truth to an outsider
share