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Sometimes I write things, but mostly I watch movies.
In a post-Roe V Wade world, it makes sense that there is a boon of horror movies dealing with women having births forced upon them. First was Immaculate, then The First Omen, and now Apartment 7A, the prequel to Rosemary’s Baby. Rosemary’s Baby is a natural choice to revisit. After all, Rosemary’s Baby is a seminal piece of horror and largely about women’s autonomy and right to choose. Apartment 7A is not a bad film by any means, but one that struggles to add anything to the conversation. It feels like it’s mostly retreading ground of the previous film. Unlike The First Omen, though, another prequel to a classic horror film, Apartment 7A doesn’t go the distance to recreate the tone and feeling of ’60s and ’70s horror.
Performances
If there’s anything that truly makes Apartment 7A stand out, then it would be Julia Garner (Ozark, Inventing Anna). Garner plays Terry Gionoffrio, a minor but key character from Rosemary’s Baby, now fleshed out into a starring role. Terry is a dancer who is down on her luck and taken in by The Castevets. From the first moment of the film, Garner has an instant screen presence. She makes Terry someone you want to see succeed, which makes her inevitable ending all the more tragic. The actor makes both the highs and lows of the character seem believable and compelling and truly carries the film.
Of course, Garner is not the only noteworthy performance here. Opposite her is Dianne Wiest as Margaux “Minnie” Castevet. West takes over the iconic role from Ruth Gordon who was in the first film. The actor, while not looking exactly like Gordon, is spot on with the voice and mannerisms she gives to Minnie. It’s uncanny how close West sounds. She is extremely charming in the role of Minnie, but she always has that dark undercurrent to her that pops when you least expect it, and overall just purely manipulative. The push and pull between Minnie and Terry is the most engaging aspect of the film. It’s thrilling to watch their conversations and read the dark subtext beneath Minnie’s dialogue. It’s also helpless watching along as she leads Terry to her tragic ending. Yet, this dynamic can only carry Apartment 7A so far.
Supporting Roles in Apartment 7A
The other supporting characters and actors are good, but nothing to write home about. In a similar vein to Diane Wiest as Minnie, Kevin McNally (the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, The Crown) as Roman Castevet is good and very well-cast. Though he is not as spot as West, he still captures the energy Sidney Blackmer gave the character of Roman.
Marli Siu portrays Annie, Terry’s best friend. Siu does well in the role of a supportive best friend and brings some much-needed lightness to the film. The only other role of note is Alan Marchand, played by Jim Sturgess. Marchand is a big-time theater producer and one who takes advantage of Terry. He makes for a fine antagonist. However, there is not much that sets him apart from other similar roles.
Artificial Apartments
While the film goes to great lengths to recreate the look of the 1960s, it still feels inauthentic. This goes especially in the few outdoor scenes when it’s clear that the city has been created or altered digitally for the retro look. That is completely understandable, but still, it causes Apartment 7A to lack the unnerving reality that Rosemary’s Baby had. Rosemary’s Baby had the sense that this was a scenario that could actually happen to someone. By comparison, Apartment 7A feels artificial. Even with its meticulous recreation of the Castevets’ apartment, it never feels quite real. It comes off more like a museum recreation of a bygone historical era.
Apartment 7A doesn’t go beat-for-beat to recreate Rosemary’s Baby. Then again, it has enough of the same ones and uses similar imagery that makes the film ache for an identity of its own. The film does have a few more original sequences that help make it stand out. This includes the opening, one involving Terry’s other neighbor, a great surreal dance, and the film’s inevitable ending. The movie also incorporates some more modern horror elements such as jump scares and doesn’t linger on any one scene. It’s not fast-paced, but it’s also not slowly seeping in dread. It struggles to find a point of balance to really let things develop.
The movie also runs into a lack of tension. How Terry’s story ends is a known quantity. Despite Garner doing a fantastic job of selling all these moments, it all kind of falls flat. There should be a strong sense of dramatic irony in this all, but there are simply not enough refreshing parts in the film to care for. Ironically, the most tense moment is its finale, just to see exactly how it all goes down in Apartment 7A.
Additional Thoughts
In terms of the movie’s core themes of a woman’s right to choose and women’s autonomy in general, they are done well enough. Terry is pressured by practically everyone in her life to keep the baby. Not to mention, she is a dancer who literally uses her body to express herself only to have her body become a tool for others. Like many unwanted pregnancies, it leads to many complications and hard-to-navigate feelings. Since a traditional abortion and adoption are off the table, she makes an unimaginable choice to deal with the reality of what’s being offered to her. It’s deeply upsetting and heartbreaking to watch Terry go through this journey. Everyone, even most other women, views her as lesser for this pregnancy and treat her like an object. Still, so much of this has been done better either by other films this year or the original Rosemary’s Baby.
From a technical standpoint the movie is fine. Filmmaker Natalie Erika James does a great job with blocking and framing. The movie generally looks quite good. James has a bright future ahead of her and with time could become a great horror director. Cinematographer Arnau Valls Colomer’s camera work is well done too. It’s especially great during the surreal dream sequences Terry has. The screenplay by Natalie Erika James with Christian White and Skylar James is good albeit nothing too remarkable.
Conclusion
Apartment 7A is never bad, but it never quite reaches the greatness of its predecssor. Ultimately, the film is competent, and Julia Garner’s great performance is worth watching. However, if you’ve already seen Rosemary’s Baby, then there’s not much new to be gained here.
Score: 3/5
Apartment 7A will be available on Paramount+ and VOD services starting September 27th!
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Sometimes I write things, but mostly I watch movies.
