Yahoo Movies Julia Garner's horror prequel debuts with poor Rotten Tomatoes rating
Rosemary's Baby prequel Apartment 7a has landed a meagre Rotten Tomatoes score following its Fantastic Fest premiere.
The movie from writer-director Natalie Erika James (Relic) serves as a backstory to the 1968 classic, exploring what happened in New York City's Bramford apartment complex before Mia Farrow's Rosemary Woodhouse moved in.
Set in 1965, the new film stars Ozark's Julia Garner as aspiring dancer Terry Gionoffrio, whose dream is smashed after a foot injury. Aided by well-connected couple Minnie (Dianne Wiest) and Roman Castevet (Kevin McNally), the down-on-her-luck protagonist moves into their home but starts noticing some weird, possibly demonic occurrences.
The cast also includes Across the Universe star Jim Sturgess, with Marli Siu, Andrew Buchan, Rosy McEwen, and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith in supporting roles.
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Apartment 7a currently sits at a 43% critics' score on Rotten Tomatoes, with more reviews expected when the film debuts on Paramount+ and VOD on September 27.
Some critics praised Garner's committed performance and appreciated how the film goes about expanding on the story of Rosemary's Baby, but others found it unable to diverge from the classic to craft something truly compelling and original. More thoughts on Apartment 7a below:
'Apartment 7A cannot step out of the shadow of Rosemary's Baby.'
'While it has its moments, Rosemary's Baby prequel Apartment 7A is never quite up to its aspirations and unforgivably misses its marks.'
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'Virtually everything here is so muted, so lifeless, that Apartment 7A starts to feel like a chore to watch.'
'All in all Apartment 7A is a fine expansion to the Rosemary's Baby lore, complete with some brilliantly dedicated performances.'
'It's a film that at least brings something different and new to the table, though, at times, the sacredness of the original movie is perhaps held onto a little too closely.'
'Apartment 7A treads the exact same territory as its nearly 60-year-old predecessor without straying from the path even a tiny bit.'
'The film's potential never crystallizes outside of one 10-minute stretch that, unfortunately, is immediately followed by the credits.'
Apartment 7A will be available to stream on Paramount+ Friday, September 27 in the US, while UK viewers can stream from September 28.
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