MovieChat Forums > Rosemary's Baby (1968) Discussion > Things you've noticed during repeat view...

Things you've noticed during repeat viewings


It's fascinating. I've seen this movie so many times and I always notice some new little thing.

The first few times I watched this I thought nothing of Guy's comment about going out to get an ice cream just after Rosemary tells him that she's meeting Hutch at the Time & Life building at 11. Just after he steps out, you hear some footsteps in the hallway and a doorbell ringing while Rosemary grovels in pain. In the next scene, Rosemary rings the same doorbell - it's Minnie's. It's little things like that which make this movie the masterpiece that it is.

What are some other little things that have caught your attention?

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Rosemary had an awful lot of friends at her party. If she had SO many friends, why did not a single one ever come visit her during her pregnancy??

I know that in the book, Guy answers the occasional call from her friends, but wouldn't they just drop by now & then?

I guess to make the novel/film flow smoothly, they dropped these people.
But still.




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Guy isolated her.

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the woodhouse's tv is really squirrelly! no flat screen?




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You must be joking! Or simply an idiot with no notion of history. Maybe it should have been in 3-D?

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Be seeing you

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I noticed the first time I saw the movie which was actually about 4-5 years ago. I didn’t have many friends at all when I married and got pregnant soon afterwards. We also had a new home. But the few I had did visit especially those that were already moms and stayed at home. Back when this movie takes place many of the married women would have likely been stay at home wives. Why not come over and help redecorate or just visit? I agree it’s possible her husband likely did isolate her which is why. But this has always bothered me even when reading the book. She certainly doesn’t appear shy or a loner.

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I loved the book , I think movie wasn't half as good , they left out so many details , important to the plot

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Guy was such a huge narcissistic prick.

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Was Guy always into devil worship or did Roman turn him on? Has to be the worst human on the face of the earth to do that to his wife since he was so loving in the beginning.

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I think that Roman just convinced Guy to go with the plan because he would help him to boost his career, there isn't any indication he was into devil worship before.

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Imagine volunteering your wife to be raped by the Devil to boost your acting career. LOL I guess the novel answered a lot of questions the film did not. I noticed that Scrabble game that Rosemary pulls out to solve the anagram is the same game we had in the 60's. We still have the board, tiles and scoring rack but not the vinyl pouch. Just thought I'd throw that in.

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I doubt very much that they gave Guy the details of the plan early on. If they did he probably wouldn't have been cooperative and they might've scared him off. I'm sure initially Roman told him something about being the leader of a very powerful group of people, who can help you advance in your career if you join us. Baumgart going blind was the 'test' to prove their power to Guy. Once that happened, he was convinced and selfishly put his own career and fame before his wife's safety. A truly slimy character indeed!

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I noticed now that Guy was very nervous from the start. If he was supposed to be unaware of the coven (and I believe that to be the case) then he should have been acting a lot calmer.

When Minnie was eating the cake, she was eating a bit piggish.

When they had the party they must have had about 100 people there as they were all squashed together in that big room.

Rosemary had parents. Why did they not visit.

I think that Dr Hill may have believed Rosemary's story up until she mentioned the renowned Dr Sapirstein.

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I also noticed that when she is around 7or 8 months pregnant, she walks in a ridiculous way and its not because she is pregrant. When she attends Hutch's funeral she has the same ridiculous walk. Its like a side to and fro hopping walk. She does it also after she has the baby.

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Maybe it's the way she really walks sometimes.

When you get up in the morning, how do you decide what shade of black to wear? (Shallow Grave)

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Perhaps it's because she had polio as a child.

From Wikipedia:

When she was 9, she contracted polio during an outbreak in Los Angeles reportedly affecting 500 people. She was placed in an isolation ward for three weeks and later said the experience "marked the end of my childhood".




(W)hat are we without our dreams?
Making sure our fantasies
Do not overpower our realities. ~ RC

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Rosemary had parents. Why did they not visit.


That's hinted at in the book; Rosemary's parents didn't like Guy--I think it was because he convinced her to elope instead of having a church wedding (Rosemary was raised a devout catholic).


I like looking back and catching Guy conspiring with the Castavets, for instance, when Minnie stops by on their "date night" to drop off the chocolate mousse, you can hear her mumbling to Guy, instructing him to give Rosemary the one with the almond on top of it. And the 'chalky under-taste Rosemary complains about is of course the pulverized sleeping pills Minnie put in it.

Yeah, they're dead, they're...all messed up!

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Rosemary's parents probably lived in the state where Rosemary grew up - far from New York. I wouldn't expect them to visit Rosemary during the time-frame in the movie.

My real name is Jeff

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But so close to her giving birth? Mom would at least come around or call every day to make sure she was well.

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How do you know they were alive? Physically able to travel to New York?

Anyway, it is not common for a parent to call their sons/daughters every day, even when pregnant, in the United States.

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Rosemary was not close with her parents. She went against the family when marrying Guy. He was a protestant and they were catholic.

At least thats what I remember from the book.


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Oh, I didn't think about that. Good point.

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Jewelpandora, i always got the impression that Dr. Hill was part of the Coven.

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That Guy never seemed to love Rosemary. Honestly, he seemed like he just tolerated her. That "make love" scene, it looked like they were both about to have a root canal as they jump into the fourplay!
I wonder if it's because both actors just lacked chemistry or is that the way Guy was written in the book? He just always looked suspicious. And in repeat viewings, I notice it more and more.
Also, I never noticed how short the actor looks.

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That's why his actions toward her are very believable.

My real name is Jeff

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That Guy never seemed to love Rosemary. Honestly, he seemed like he just tolerated her. That "make love" scene, it looked like they were both about to have a root canal as they jump into the fourplay!
I wonder if it's because both actors just lacked chemistry or is that the way Guy was written in the book? He just always looked suspicious. And in repeat viewings, I notice it more and more.
Also, I never noticed how short the actor looks.
You know a lot of people back then got married simply for the fact that "It was the thing to do" without ever really considering if they were truly in love. The idea of reaching your mid 30s and not be married and start to have children was unfathomable back then. So it is very possible they didn't really love each other.






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I was always aware how Guy snatched his hand away from Rosemary's belly, but hadn't caught how he was wrenching his fingers together. It was telling how he, in an unconscious way, was saying "Man, I'm in this deep."

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I always notice that too. Guy obviously knew what was growing inside her and was clearly afraid of it. When he touched her stomach to feel the "baby" it finally hit home. He pulls away with fear and repulsion as he does with Rosemary herself. He starts wearing pajamas to bed and is visibly distant with her. Guy had no strong religious beliefs and as Rosemary said was very self-centered putting his career first. Once he knows what is going on he appears very nervous and unsure of himself.

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That the actress that Rosemary remarks that Terry looks like, is in fact the actress that plays Terry. Victoria Vetri.

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Good detail. Victoria Vetri was very good in just that one scene she had. I liked the way she said 'they picked me up off the street--literally.' And when she was talking about Mrs. Gardenia, there was a slight pause when she said 'She...was a good friend of the Castevets'. That pause told of the unpleasant way Mrs. Gardenia and the Castevets parted ways.

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Vetri was also the 1968 Playmate of the Year (under a different name.) Later she shot her husband and was sentenced to prison.

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That’s was a delicious bit of casting, similar to putting Mia Farrow in The Omen remake.

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That’s was a delicious bit of casting, similar to putting Mia Farrow in The Omen remake.

Although in the book, Rosemary is confused upon meeting Terry because she thinks she's Anna Maria Alberghetti (who was a real life musical comedy actress at the time of the book's publication.) (She was in Carousel, which was later filmed with Leslie Caron.)

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When the door to the apartment is first opened to show it to the Woodhouses, what catches your eye is the secretary at the end of the hall, directly facing the camera. It's brightly lit, appearing an almost orange color.

Of course, this key piece of furniture will gradually become the focus of the scene...

.

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Like all truly great films it seems that no matter how often you watch them, you pick up some new detail or something you missed before. Even if you watched the movie, like dozens of times. With this movie, you pick up even more if you've read the book. For example, in the book there's a passage about Rosemary's sculpture class. In the movie, there is a sculpture in the living room above the sofa which I now assume is Rosemary's work. The menu for the "Under 60" party is discussed in detail in the novel and if you look at what she's preparing in the movie, it's spot on! It's pretty amazing. One thing it took me a while to catch on was this: I'm pretty sure the shot of the tannis charm going down the sewer drain is shot on a soundstage. Amazing...!

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Mr. Nicklas (in the book: Mr. Micklas) played by Elisha Cook - before showing Rosemary and Guy the apartment he actually presses the doorbell before letting the couple and himself into the apartment. This detail is also in the book.
Why does he do that?
Mrs. Gardenia - the previous tenant is dead, there is nobody living there and Mr. Nicklas / Micklas presumably has the only key. Is he giving a warning to whoever may have come through the hidden door in the closet that people are entering?

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I never thought he was in the coven but now you mention it that probably explains why he’s adamant that the cabinet be moved back to its original position, allowing access to the secret door.

Do we see him at the Satanic baby shower at the end..?

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