Since Ira Levin’s best-selling novel Rosemary’s Baby was released in 1967, followed by Roman Polanski’s iconic 1968 film adaptation of the same name, attempts at remaking, reimagining, and continuing the story have been unsuccessful.
Warning: 56-year-old spoilers ahead for Rosemary’s Baby.
Writer-director Natalie Erika James (Relic) sets out to do something different with Apartment 7A, which she co-wrote with Christian White (Clickbait) based on an early draft by Skylar James. The psychological thriller is a prequel that doesn’t center on Rosemary and her nightmarish pregnancy.
The story follows Theresa “Terry” Gionoffrio, a side character from the novel who briefly appeared in the 1968 film, played by Angela Dorian. Rosemary (Mia Farrow) meets her in the Bramford’s laundry room and later sees her dead on the sidewalk.
In Apartment 7A, set in 1965, Terry Gionoffrio (Julia Garner) is a young dancer from Nebraska trying to make it big in New York City. Within the first three minutes of the film, she sustains an ankle injury during a performance and her career takes a hit. Months later, she’s auditioning again, determined to get back on track, popping pills (seemingly painkillers) just to get through the day.
After a bad audition where she was called the infamous “Girl Who Fell” and made to repeat the very move that broke her ankle, Terry takes one (or two) too many pills. An older couple, Roman (Kevin McNally) and Margaux “Minnie” Castevet (Dianne Wiest) find her in rough shape on the sidewalk and help her into their apartment in the Bramford building.
When she wakes up, they immediately treat her like the daughter they never had and invite her to move into an apartment down the hall, which they own. Minnie is especially pushy and doesn’t take no for an answer.
Terry’s friend and fellow dancer Annie (Marli Siu) is the voice of reason, reminding her that these are in fact, strangers. Of course, she accepts because living in a place like the Bramford rent-free isn’t something to pass up. It also doesn’t hurt that the Castevets are friendly with Alan Marchand (Jim Sturgess), the Broadway producer putting on the show Terry desperately wants to be in, who also lives at the Bramford.
Minnie and Roman are more than welcoming, which Terry brushes off since they’ve been so generous. However, their aggressive helpfulness gets troubling and claustrophobic. Like Rosemary, Terry is drugged and violated one night. The unwanted pregnancy would further derail her career but she’s groomed, guilted, and gaslit into going along with it, at least at first.
In an interview with Vanity Fair, James described Terry as “both the vessel and also kind of an active part of the Faustian exchange … being made to feel complicit in her own assault.” Her motivations and circumstances are similar to those of Guy, Rosemary’s husband in the original story. Terry and Guy are both ambitious performers struggling to land the right roles who would do just about anything to make it big. However, Terry soon questions if the sacrifices are worth the reward.
The film doesn’t recreate the exchange between Terry and Rosemary. They don’t interact at all. Amy Leeson and Scott Hume are credited as Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse, respectively, but they’re only ever seen in passing. We do get to meet the former tenant of 7E, Mrs. Gardenia (Tina Gray), the older woman and implied cult member who died before the Woodhouses moved in.
The trailer doesn’t mention or suggest this is a prequel to Rosemary’s Baby, although the synopsis and character names give it away. Reimagining Terry as a dancer gives Suspiria and Black Swan vibes.
While the actual story isn’t that compelling, the film is beautifully shot by cinematographer Arnau Valls Colomer (Penny Dreadful). Even though it was filmed in London instead of New York, Simon Bowles’ (The Descent) set design has the essence of the original, especially the Bramford.
The costumes by Michele Clapton (Game of Thrones) are also a treat, particularly Minnie’s 50s-inspired eclectic wardrobe and Terry’s performance outfits. The crushed gem-encrusted demon design is a creative departure from the typical horned beast (though we see images of that as well).
Apartment 7A is a well-shot, well-acted take on a previously unexplored character. However, it has the challenge of being a prequel, meaning there’s no real mystery to follow because we already know her fate and how she found herself in the Castevets’ grasp, all that’s left is to watch it unfold. It may work better for those unfamiliar with the original story and can view it as a standalone film. If you have Paramount+ and like stories about satanic cults, it’s worth the 104-minute runtime.
Apartment 7A has its world premiere September 20, 2024, at Fantastic Fest and hits Paramount+ on September 27.
