[AMAZONPRODUCTS asin=”B00KA0VEGO”]As Hollywood continues a seemingly never ending quest to remake every classic film, this past May, NBC delivered the four hour mini-series Rosemary’s Baby, carefully described as a reimagining of the 1968 Roman Polanski horror classic. While I believe director Agnieska Holland (Europa Europa, In Darkness) had the best of intentions, the result is underwhelming, particularly when there’s a far better film version of the story readily available on both Blu-ray and DVD from Criterion.

As the film begins, a woman flings herself off the balcony of a Paris apartment, plunging to her death. From there, we are introduced to Rosemary (Zoe Saldana) and Guy (Patrick J. Adams) Woodhouse at an obstetrician’s office, where they’re distraught to learn that their four month old baby has no heartbeat. In hopes of a fresh start, the couple moves to Paris, where Guy, a writer, has a teaching stint at the Sorbonne.

In the original, Mia Farrow’s Rosemary had been meek and trusting. Without a job, she had little more to do than direct the apartment. Here, Rosemary is a former dancer who supported her husband for years while he worked on a novel. The move to Paris and the fact that she knows little French is meant to bring out her naiveté. While some insecurity is understandable, Rosemary’s sudden transformation to a stressed out bundle of uncertainty is a tough pill to swallow. France is just not as supernatural as the makers of this film want viewers to believe.

An attempted purse snatching brings Rosemary to a rather eerie apartment building, where she meets Margaux (Carole Bouquet) and Roman Castavet (Jason Isaacs) These two are nothing like the odd, aggressive couple played by Ruth Gordon and Sidney Blackmer in the Polanski version. Wealthy French sophisticates, they are vey friendly and offer the young American couple the use of an empty apartment in their building. Initially skeptical of the Castevets, Rosemary can’t shake the bad vibes she’s getting from her new home. Eventually though, her suspicions are carefully eased and manipulated by the Castevets and a two-faced Guy to the point that, in a drug-induced trance, she becomes impregnated by the devil.

Shown forty-six years after the original appeared in theaters, the idea of Satan is no longer original, nor as scary. Rosemary’s Baby helped to spawn the classics The Omen, The Exorcist and countless imitators. Black magic has become such a part of our popular culture; it’s fairly humdrum. At 170 minutes, the filmmakers have used their additional screen time to expand on the terrible things that happen to people who get in the way of the Castevets’ plans. While most of this was kept off screen in the Polanski version, it’s all here in its gory, devilish detail. While viewers of Hannibal may be used to such scenes, actually seeing the gore isn’t necessarily an enhancement to Rosemary’s Baby.

While the rest of the cast appears wooden and forgettable, Zoe Saldana deserves credit for clearly trying to put a new spin on a role identified with Mia Farrow. She knows something’s wrong, but can’t get anyone to listen to her. However, because director Agnieska Holland and screenwriters Scott Abbott and James Wong failed to capture that black humor inherent in both Ira Levin’s original novel and Roman Polanski’s classic film, this Rosemary’s Baby is stillborn.

Presented in the 1.78:1 aspect ratio, Lionsgate offers up a solid 1080p transfer. Sharp, detailed and free of artifacts, the only flaw is slightly underwhelming blacks. Aside from that, color is excellent throughout, skin tones appear normal, and contrast is consistent.

The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound mix makes sporadic, yet solid use of the entire soundfield. Background music is consistently found in the fronts and rears. Occasional split effects make a nice impact when used, and ambient sounds are fresh. Dialogue has been clearly and concisely recorded and placed in the center channel. Could use just a bit more pop; but not bad.

English SDH, and Spanish subtitles are included.

The following extras are available:

  • Fear is Born: The Making of Rosemary’s Baby (HD, 12:03) A look at the making of the film, featuring interviews with director Agnieska Holland and actors Zoe Saldana, Patrick J. Adams, Jason Isaac, and Carole Bouquet. Zoe Saldana insists with a straight face that this isnt a remake of the Polanski film, but, bless her heart, it is!
  • Grand Guignol: Parisian Production Design (HD, 6:35) A brief look at the decidedly lavish sets with production designerAnne Seibel and others.
  • UV Copy: Code sheet enclosed in the case.