The Breakdown: After moving into a new apartment, a young woman grows increasingly suspicious of those around her as her pregnancy progresses.
Watch If: You want a masterpiece of old fashioned horror with themes that are still relevant today.
Not If: You have trouble with slow burn movies without the modern "horror" elements.
SECONDARY FACTS
Overall Rating: 4.0
Length: 2:17
Country: USA
Language: English
Gore Factor: 0
REVIEW
THE QUICK AND DIRTY
Yes, I'm aware this movie is a Roman Polanski film, which definitely gives the subject matter some very dark insights into the mind of its creator, but I still believe that this film is an absolute treasure and an uncomfortably intricate look into the themes of body autonomy and abuse. It's a classic, and while it's a bit slow, it's worth the watch if you've ever wondered how horror can be used as social commentary.
PREMISE:4
This film is definitely milking the same cultural fascination with cults that would fuel the Manson family, the rise of Satanic Panic, and the massive amount of cults that would rise and fall in the late 60s and 70s. But where so many other cult films, where people willingly by into it, this one focuses on an unwilling, and unwitting, protagonist. Its an angle that truly highlights the real danger in conspiracies, the fact that, it doesn't matter what you do, they'll get their way in the end.
ACTING:5
Mia Farrow is an absolute muse in this film. The dexterity and intensity of her character, and the way with simple gestures or motions, the audience gets full insight into the characters thoughts and feeling is absolute gold. The other actors in the film do an outstanding job as well, often managing to walk that thin line where you, as the viewer, are genuinely unsure if they're a threat, or just a little too friendly.
AUDIO AND VISUALS:4
I hate dream sequences. There's almost no way to make them interesting, or make sense, or even make them at all without making them ridiculously pretentious or heavy handed. But in this film, the dream sequence is intentionally confusing, and the fact that its a dream sequence and almost feels real is the entire point. The music is phenomenal, and the way the saturation of the film changes the further down the rabbit hole we go is an incredibly effective and visceral way to represent the character's changes. Not to mention the incredibly framing throughout this entire film. It really lets you sink into the story rather than feel like you're watching something.
ATMOSPHERE:3
This one is hard to rewatch. It unfolds slowly, and if you've already seen it, it looses most of the compelling aspects and becomes an uphill battle against the pacing. It's a slow burn, and i mean a really slow burn, so make sure you're ready for that. It's also a balancing act between solid moments of "That is NOT ok," and "is... is this relevant?" Yes. It is all relevant. It all comes back. But between the pacing, the saturation of the film, and the down right monstrous length of 2 hours and 17 minutes, watching this film is a commitment. If you're not in the mood for it, or it's not really your thing, you will get bored.
DELIVERY:4
This film will always be one of the sounding examples of a slow-burn horror. It's a classic film that I definitely believe has earned its place, and any horror fan should suffer through it at least once. Probably... not more than twice. It's tiring. I usually put it on when I'm doing something else. But if you haven't seen it, do so.
Starring
Written By: Roman Polanski, Ira Levin
Director: Roman Polanski
Affiliate Companies: William Castle Productions
Music: Krzysztof Komeda
Cinematography: William A. Fraker