After making his Black Swan (2010) out of Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue (1997) (see my article on the topic here), Darren Aronofsky now seems to make his new film Mother! out of everyone’s much beloved horror classic Rosemary’s Baby (1968). The phrases “paying homage” and “drawing inspiration” really camouflage the lack of artistic ideas and originality, and it is a pity. More than a pity. If Aronofsky’s shameful Perfect Blue/Black Swan creation showed a deplorable disregard for another form of art, his now seemingly hybrid Rosemary’s Baby/Mother! monster confirms that there is really nothing sacred left when it comes to making new films in the 21st century. And, even if Aronofsky’s new film Mother! will contain virtually nothing in common/ no similarities with Polanski’s Rosemary’s Baby, the new poster to his film Mother! is really a step too far, and, surely, demonstrates the lack of basic artistic respect for the previous work of art. How hard is it really to make one’s own movie poster and restrain oneself from dragging the fans of Polanski’s masterpiece into your own money-making machine?
Spotlight on Film 
I think what Aronofsky’s doing here is paying homage to Rosemary’s Baby rather than ripping it off. After all, it’s such an iconic design that I’m sure he wouldn’t even get away with it, which he obviously hasn’t. That is, if he even had anything to do with the promotional material anyway…
Milo.
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Paying homage? This is more than ridiculous. I do not understand how Aronofsky can call himself a writer. He gives this vibe that he possesses next to zero originality, creativity and imagination.
And, please…he has everything to do with the promotional material. He is the director and writer of the film. His name and reputation are wrapped up in it.
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It’s not that ridiculous to think about to be honest, this has been done countless times, especially in the horror genre. Plus, you’d be surprise how little some directors have to do with marketing side of things. Moreover, I think it’s unfair to say Aronofsky has “zero originality”, with films like Requiem For A Dream under his belt? Pi? The Wrestler? And, I’m just putting THIS bombshell out there, Black Swan was really great! Everyone’s inspired by something, maybe some people wear this originality more blatantly than others, but nothing’s original at the end of the day. And, anyway, Mother! hasn’t even come out yet, it could surprise you and be one of the most original horror films in years! (By the way, saying “And please…” is kinda condescending but it’s cool)
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Look, you cannot “pay homage” to individual films like that. Pay homage to the horror genre of that decade. You either remake a film or you are not, and if you are not remaking – do not use the original poster for your film. This is called “disrespect” and simply is very bad taste.
What did Aronofsky write exactly? A Bible story? “Requiem for A Dream” was great, but it was based on the novel, you know that, of course? All that I am saying is that, here, it seems that his “creativity” and imagination run low indeed. And, no, there is a limit to every “inspiration”.
And, btw, drop your “bombshells” on some other blogs.
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Alright look, the poster is so overtly parodying Rosemary’s Baby that there is no way he’s not doing it with some kind of meta value. Plus, you don’t know if Mother! has anything to do with the flick, so it has to be Aronofsky saying “Let’s pay homage to Rosemary’s Baby”. Just because Reqiuem was based on a novel, doesn’t mean he didn’t write the screenplay, which he did, as he did for Pi and The Fountain, two fiercely original films in their own right. While it might not be creative, paying homage to Rosemary’s Baby in this poster is not offensive and definitely not disrespectful.
Milo.
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Sure it is, it is simply shocking. Let’s agree to disagree. I seem to be talking to a real Aronofsky fan.
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Not really, I just disagree, as you said, haha. Damn, I kinda see where your coming from, very slightly though. But, on the upside, your comment numbers on this article have soared in the last half hour! And it was a well argued point 🙂
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You had me at Aronosfsky! Can’t wait to see it.
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I thought that poster looked familiar! Nice review.
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I too thought the post had a familiar look. Still, I’m excited for the movie.
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Excited we are. Perhaps, we should all have guessed by the title it is going to be something along the lines of “Rosemary’s Baby” hehe
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You make a good point there. I look forward to it as I really dug Black Swan.
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I am not sure now it will be as good as Black Swan. I hope so. The trick here is to have new ideas up one’s sleeve or “recycle” old ideas so brilliantly, a film has the aura of originality. Get Out (2017) has done the latter. You can only go so far with any psychological horror film.
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We will just have to wait and see.
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