"Rosemary's Baby" Miniseries Review

The new Rosemary's Baby mini-series on NBC failed to live up to high expectations, no doubt due in part to the upstanding legacy of the Mia Farrow film adaptation. Given the increasing amount of gore and adrenaline-pumping style of horror that has evolved as time has passed, the slower pace of the mini-series makes it more underwhelming. There's a lack of urgency with the series' build and it's not as eerie as the film. The setting being moved from New York to France can arguably cushion this, as European films are often known for having a slower pace than the action-packed bang of many Hollywood-funded productions.

The fact that Zoe Saldana was cast in the lead is a baby step for progress, and her performance is the only one that seemed to offer anything compelling. But this Rosemary's Baby offers up lessons important to the modern woman. If viewers bother to dig a little deeper, much can be taken away from watching it. For one thing, don't take beverage from strangers. It might sound redundant, but it's nonetheless necessary to teach. Trust your instincts; if something's off about a person, you should keep away from them without fear of causing offence. But more importantly, as the plot revolves around pregnancy, comparisons can be made to the long-standing problem of politicising womyn's bodies. When Rosemary experiences physical distress from her demonic spawn, everyone around her is attempting to control her actions. But in telling them all that they don't know the pain she is experiencing, she is reclaiming her body as her own. It's the most important, stand-out message in an otherwise dreary re-make.