APARTMENT 7A
Starring: Julia Garner, Dianne Wiest, Kevin McNally, and Jim Sturgess
Director: Natalie Erika James
PAIGE
Despite Julia Garner's best efforts, Apartment 7A lacks the personality necessary to stand on its own two feet, as all the essential components that made Rosemary's Baby such an iconic classic are absent here. There is no real suspense or feeling of purpose in this so-called "horror" movie because of its sluggish pacing. To be honest, there isn't really a need for this prequel at all. Watch it for another good performance from Garner, but don’t expect this movie to live up to its predecessor.
QUENTIN
After Apartment 7A, I think I’m about done with the recent trend of middling horror prequels coasting on the coattails of the classic IP. Since last year, we’ve seen unremarkable prequels to The Omen, Pet Sematary, and The Exorcist; now we have one for Rosemary’s Baby. The weird thing is, even if it fills in some blanks from the original, it’s mostly a remake packaged as a prequel, which means it doesn’t really offer anything new. On top of that, it’s simply not scary or suspenseful. Julia Garner tries to elevate the material best she can, but material this weak can only be elevated so much.
KATIE
Apartment 7A undertakes the impossible task of living up to Rosemary’s Baby, but fails to add anything worthwhile to the story. Julia Garner’s performance is engaging, and the film touches upon potentially interesting themes of abortion and trauma, but the topics could have been explored more freely if not limited by its prequel status and reliance on references to the original film. Plus, outside of some compelling dream sequences, Apartment 7A is a far cry from the creepy brilliance of Natalie Erika James’ debut feature Relic, which is one of my favourite horror films.
This film was reviewed by Paige and Quentin as part of Bitesize Breakdown's coverage of the 2024 Fantastic Film Festival.