Customer Reviews

Rosemary's Baby (Bloomsbury Film Classics)

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Why am I giving this book 5 stars when the writing isn't especially great? Because Ira Levin hit every right note in "Rosemary's Baby" and made it into an instantaneous horror classic. On one level, it's a great horror story; on another, it's also a kind of morality play: God has a son; what happens when the devil gets jealous and wants one too?

Enter Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse, almost-newlyweds, new tenants in an old, luxury building called "The Bramford", famous for its high ceilings and working fireplaces, notorious for its unsavory happenings (dead baby wrapped in newspapers abandoned in the basement). They are warned off by Hutch, an old friend of Rosemary's who knows all about the building's sordid history, but disregard the omens.

Rosemary is a housewife (yes, back in the day there actually were such things) who wants to be a mother. Guy is an actor and a rising star whose talent is overshadowed only by his unlimited ambition. Next door are the Castevets, Minnie and Roman, a delightfully ditzy old couple who just happen to head a coven of witches who have made a pact with the devil. Rosemary wants a baby; Guy wants a leading part in a hit play; the witches want... well, all the ingredients are there for a devil's brew that sets the pot boiling wonderfully for 260 pages.

After a nightmarish impregnation, Rosemary goes through a hellacious pregnancy, presided over by Dr. Sapirstein, a famous "society" obstetrician who assures Rosemary that her pains will go away in a day or two. Hutch's death after a long, suspicious illness jolts Rosemary out of her cocoon of trusting ignorance, and here Levin builds the horror up ever so insidiously until it hits you like a sledgehammer. Rosemary discovers who her neighbors are; that they have drawn her husband into a diabolical plot, and when she runs to Dr. Sapirstein for protection, she finds out that he too is... well, if you can't trust your husband and your obstetrician, who can you trust? Rosemary is left alone to try to save her baby from what she fears is a plot against his life and safety, remembering that dead baby in the basement; there's a plot afoot, all right, but what it is, is something neither Rosemary or the reader could possibly imagine until they stare at it, literally and figuratively, in the eyes.

Levin is one terrific storyteller and he manages to time the action to coincide perfectly with the story line; Rosemary conceives, ironically, on the night of the Pope's visit to New York in early October, and the baby is born, fittingly, right after midnight, "exactly half the year around from you-know". Some readers have complained that the ending is lame after all the shock and horror, and they have a point, but it's fun to wonder, how else could Levin have ended this story? It's a perfect psychological horror fantasy, no blood, no gore, no things that go bump in the night, but just the ordinary neighbors next door that can and do raise all kinds of hell. It's a classic that has stood the test of time; after 35 years, it's still a great read.

Judy Lind

I love the movie so I wanted to read this and see if I could get more from the story. It's actually almost identical to the movie, though. Apparently, the movie is the most accurate adaptation of a book ever so there's not much more here except for a couple tiny scenes that were probably planned to be in the movie and eliminated at some point for time or whatever. In any case, this is a fun book and even knowing the story from watching the movie a million times, it does its job of being scary and suspenseful.

Rosemarys Baby is extremely easy to read and you will get through the book in no time at all. It is short, about 200 pages and is pretty much more of a novella than a full bloodied horror manuscript. None the less - it is still extremely satisfying and the size and depth of the story is particularly suitable for the subject matter at hand.

The plot revolves around the newly wed Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse who have moved into a huge apartment in a building known as the Bramford in New York. Rosemary wants children and Guy, an actor, wants to further his career. Hutch, a friend of Rosemary, tells her that the Bramford is a "danger zone" because of previous murders, suicides and diabolical deeds that have gone on there in the past. Sure enough many of these atrocities slowly begin to unveil themselves much to the dismay of Rosemary. Guy sees these events as just a coincidence and the elderly occupants who live in the Bramford seem to be all too innocent to be involved in plotting murders or faking suicides.

Eventually everything settles down and Rosemary gets pregnant during a nightmare that has her confused but she gradually calms down to prepare for her new born but not without the smothering attention of her neighbors who pop around twenty times a day to help her out. Rosemary casually begins to notice things in the Bramford or about its occupants in passing and slowly suspicion begins to develop in her mind that all may not be as it seems.

There is a classic mystery lurking behind the more horrific avenues found in this great story as Rosemary slowly unravels the unknown which seems to have a diabolical nature. Doctors hint that her pregnancy may be causing undue stress and the reader is left guessing right up until the last few pages as to if there is a plot to sacrifice her baby or if she is going mad in some sort of prenatal depression. The ending is a total shock to the uninformed reader!

Roman Polanski also directed the film version of this book. Both the film and book are excellent choices of entertainment.

Highly recommended original horror!

I have been on an Ira Levin marathon since reading the sequel to this book. So, I went back and read R's Baby after not having read it in thirty years. It is such an amazing book on so many levels it's hard to talk about. Everything, description, dialogue, characters, setting, and most of all plot, mesh seamlessly in one of the great reads of all time. If you've never read it you are in for a treat. As a side note, the film version by Roman Polanski is also a masterpiece. It is the best adaptation of book to film ever done. The reason for this is simple: It IS the book. Polanski didn't know he could change anything so 95% of the dialogue is taken verbatim from the book and the other five percent is paraphrased. It helps that Levin writes the best dialogue of anyone writing fiction today. But the more amazing thing is, that visual touches that I've been ascribing to Polanski all these years are ALSO right out of the book, as are several costume descriptions. Were it only that more movie adaptations were this faithful and we weren't subjected to baboon screenwriters' "fixing" of novels. For the clearest example of horrifying adaptation, one only need turn to Mr. Joe Estherhaz' adaptation of Ira Levin's Sliver

Personally, I think that Polanski's movie with Mia Farrow is absolutely genial and nothing can be better. That said, however, I must admit that I liked Ira Levin's novel. I found it in the Old Town of Basel, in a box with free old books. The language seems a little awkward at first, but the description of the building and apartment are really good for the imagination. The atmosphere is scary from the beginning, but gradually gets more and more suspenseful, and the character of Rosemary is great, although, of course, I could not get rid of the image of Mia Farrow in my head...

The story is of a couple, who start a family, move into a nice apartment in an old, rather creepy building,and want to have a baby. Guy, the husband, is a promising actor, hungry for success, while Rosemary, his wife, is very much into the family life and has somewhat idealized vision of their future. When the news of pregnancy arrive, all the neighbors abecome very interested and helpful...

The ending is different from the ending of the film, so it is good to know both.
It is the ultimate horror classic and although there were some recent variations on the theme, especially in the cinema (like "Godsend" with Robert de Niro or "Blessed" with Heather Graham), they were not at all as good as this story.

Ira Levin's novel is utterly fascinating. For one, the best element is that the horror and suspense all come from seemingly normal, everyday things. A world where the bad guys are the quirky next door neighbors is a lot scarier than one where the ridiculous horned monsters are the bad guys. Two, his dialogue is sparkling. It's as if all of the characters are real flesh and blood, the way that they speak so realistically. Three, I found it very interesting that Levin approached writing it not by using big words and long, complicated descriptions. His sentances are short, precise, and sweet. It makes a nice "relaxing" read. Also, the movie adaption is one of the best films ever made and is brimming with excellent performances. Read it and see the movie. I totally agree with the reader who commented on the movie being the best adaption of a book to film.

Thirty three years after it was first published, Levin's book still stands as one of the best Horror/fantasy novels ever written. As one of the first books of the genre to become a nestseller, one can almost imagine what a stir it caused back in 1966. For even now, with Roman Polanski's masterwork film version indelibly shaping our imaginations as we read, "Rosemary's Baby" still manages to send a genuine chill down the spine with it's deft handling of it's ingenious yet simple plot.

Within the premise of a young wife having her womb bartered to the devil by her selfish husband, Levin weaves issues of religion, women's changing social roles, betrayal, modern vs. ancient, dehumanization and paranoia.

"Rosemary's Baby" is not only a fun read, it's honestly scary, and, if you let yourself think about it, pretty darn smart.

For years I only knew the classic film adaptation by director Roman Polanski. Reading this book, I was struck by how faithful Polanski's adaptation was. Most of the dialogue is a word-for-word transcription. Naturally, having seen the movie time and again, I wasn't as creeped out as a "Rosemary's Baby" novice might be. But I still think Levin does a hell of a job of teasing and toying with the reader, revealing little glimpses of the truth as the story moves along. Levin's writing style is very visual, and he provides a bit more insight into the characters' backgrounds than is given in the Polanski film. All told, this is an excellent companion piece to the movie and vice versa. Both make for great, spine-tingling entertainment.

Like the many alibis given throughout this book, Rosemary's Baby's plot was airtight. I couldn't find a flaw in the suspenseful lead to the climax; not once did I come across something unconvincing, implausible, or contrary to an earlier mentioned event or detail. Levin gave this work just the right amount of foreshadowing to keep me guessing throughout its entirety, and to either pat myself on the back for figuring out a cleverly placed hint or chastise myself for missing one. In that sense, this book was a literal page-turner, as I backtracked an awful lot to see where I'd read a certain name or detail before. My anticipation was held throughout.

I wasn't crazy about the end, which I won't give away, but suffice it to say that the revenge-loving reader won't be sated. Also, between this book and the Stepford Wives, Levin demonstrates a knack for casting us men as such awful villains, participating in nefarious schemes against the women who love us. Ouch.

...you've missed the number one page-turner of all time. This is the first book I ever read in one sitting and there's never been anything else quite like it. You will not be able to put it down, and, ultimately, that's what an entertaining book is supposed to accomplish, right? Tremendous fun!