Mini Castevet Eating Cake In Rosemary's Baby (1968)

Horrific table manners...the lot of them...commencing to eat before everyone is served, and then plowing into it like pigs at a trough! Tsk, Tsk

And shouldn't Minnie have served Devil's Food Cake?

I think Ruth Gordon performed that scene the way she did because the cake was supposed to have some kind of "potion" in it to assist in making Rosemary's baby the devil, and Ruth was anxious about making sure Rosemary ate it.

Plus, the grotesquerie of the eating supported the notion that the Castevets were evil and barbaric.

She just looks like somebody from the great depression eating fast because the food might go away quickly

That cake looks like something she picked up at Costco.

Of course Guy would be talking about his acting career, his characters, and the way he interpreted them, as most actors would.

Minnie eats like a savage, her eyes scanning the table (seemingly to see who needs another slice of cake, but also noticing every detail), and this helps distract the audience from Roman’s easy manipulation of self-centered Guy. (“I loved your performance as Deacon #5 in Luther. You did some little gesture, what was it? So meaningful.”)

Guy agrees to let Minnie and Roman impregnate Rosemary to help his own career. The way Guy and Minnie attack the cake shows how greedy they are - Minnie for a devil child, Guy for a successful acting career - while Guy’s interaction with Roman shows Guy as weak-minded and easily led.

That was a performance that won an Academy Award. But it was also way, way OTT. She was trying to steal every scene she was in.

And soon Rosemary would adopt their eating style as she sears a steak for all of 3 seconds on each side before chowing down....

She stole every scene she was in without trying.

Similar to R3 I imagined her growing up in a large, hungry family and eating defensively

It's the only way to eat Satanism Cake, OP.

Stab! Shove! Chomp! and then scan the table not just with her eyes but with her entire upper torso.

Great scene. She licks her fingers between each serving of cake, uses her own fork to pass a second piece to Guy. Minnie chews like her teeth hurt! Her concern over Guy and Rosemary enjoying the dessert but doesn't care if Roman is eating or not.

bump

Ruth Gordon was perfection in this movie. She nailed every single scene, and her total lack of vanity must be admired. Not sure if any actress today would have the courage to take on such a role.

R15- Lucy was offered the part of Mini Castevet but Gary foolishly talked her out of it.

Already did the “shove food in my mouth” scene

These are the scene descriptions from the script. A lot of that action did not end up in the final cut but instead Polanski decided to focus Ruth Gordon munching the pie. Steal that scene she did! Brava

Mrs. Castevet stands up and starts to collect the empty plates.

Mrs. Castevet serves the dessert. Boston cream pie.

We can see from Rosemary's expression that the Boston cream pie isn t too good. She looks at Guy but he is eating away avidly.

Guy laughs but he is pleased. He casts a brighteyed glance at Rosemary. She smiles back.

Mrs. Castevet holds out the Boston cream pie towards Guy.

Rosemary looks in surprise at Guy who is helping himself to the dessert.

“It has an undertaste.”

Brilliant performance. R7 doesn't get it if he thinks this was OTT. Minnie Castevet was a savage, a vulgar barbarian with no thought of social norms and who eats like she's devouring prey. But she also disgusting in the most banal ways, licking her fingers and using her own fork, in between shoveling it into her mouth, while serving food. This was actually restraint and great character exposition by the actor. Another actor would have tried to convey this through bitchy line readings or subtle body language or something. Ruth Gordon just played Minnie like she is: repulsive and appalling.

One of the few Oscars that was unequivocally awarded correctly.

Who here has read the book? I hear it’s exactly like the movie.

I always thought Minnie and Roman were an odd couple. He seems wordly and refined and she seems low-class New Yawk.

I never understood Ro's line when they get back to the apt.: "That CAKE!". It looked fine; cake is cake.

R21 I binge re-read the book about once a year and always finish it in a few hours time--usually when I'm sick or sad. It's such a comfort read.

And yes, it's basically line for line identical to the film with one exception--in the book, Rosemary is physically described as a much sturdier, corn-fed girl, as opposed to the fragile, bird-like waif that we get in Mia Farrow. I approve of that one change Polanski made to the character. It makes Rosemary feel like a more physically vulnerable target.

R22 Minnie is a terrible cook is the idea. It's repeated often.

It should be a Mardi Gras king cake

R17- LOL 😄

She's a vulgarian!

Love this movie.

R21 Loved the book, scared the shit out of me. Ira Levin also wrote Boys from Brazil and A Kiss Before Dying. GREAT STUFF!

When I think what they spend on robes and Jeweeeeels.

If someone young wants to watch a film to see the fashion of the 60s, this is a perfect example. The slingback shoes that Mia wore were widely popular.

[quote]Who here has read the book? I hear it’s exactly like the movie.

Polanski took the dialogue pretty much word for word from the book. There are some minor changes (the Victoria Vetri in-joke in the film was an Anna Maria Alberghetti reference in the book and Hutch features a bit more in the novel) but it's a rare instance where if you've seen the movie you've essentially read the book. But you miss out on all of Rosemary's internal thoughts about what's going on; Farrow does a good job conveying a lot with her performance but you get much more detail about Rosemary's doubts, fears and observations in the novel. It's a very entertaining read and highly recommended even if you've seen the movie dozens of times. I like both but since I read the book first I prefer that incarnation.

[quote] Minnie Castevet was a savage, a vulgar barbarian with no thought of social norms and who eats like she's devouring prey. But she also disgusting in the most banal ways, licking her fingers and using her own fork, in between shoveling it into her mouth

R20 Your description reminded me of someone who is very fond of McDonald’s.

R31 I loved her fuzzy blue slippers and begged my mother for an identical pair when I was a kid--luckily that exact style made a comeback in the late 90s. My father would silently raise his eyebrow whenever he saw his eleven year old son bouncing around the house in them, but luckily he never said a word or my mother would have bitten his head off.

please do an imitation of Minnie eating her cake at your next dinner party. Hilarity will ensue.

The way she moves her mouth while she chewing is hilarious. Ruth Gordon deserved an Oscar for that cake scene alone!

I wonder how much of Ruth Gordon's performance was her own and how much was due to Polanski's direction. I imagine he let her run with it.

You should’ve seen how she gulped me down!

The cake had an undertaste.

I have to laugh at the mention of the gesture Guy did in Luther which surely would have upstaged Albert Finney.

This thread is one of the reasons I come to Datalounge. I've read the book many time since I was a kid (10?), and I snuck into the movie when I was 12, and since seen the movie way too many times. I never really noticed Minnie in the scene. I was always more focused on Guy and Roman.

One of my all-time favorite movies.

Minnie is a perfect example of the slightly nutty elderly Jews who used to inhabit the Upper West Side - the ones who didn’t escape to the suburbs when the UWS went into serious decline post WW2.

R42- I don't think her character was supposed to be Jewish.

Love Ruth but that was disturbing. Rosemary's Baby-not my cup of tea.

[quote][R22] Minnie is a terrible cook is the idea. It's repeated often.

Minnie is an excellent cook...for the purpose at hand.

[quote]I have to laugh at the mention of the gesture Guy did in Luther which surely would have upstaged Albert Finney.

R40 Agreed. I laughed when Guy made the feeble gesture and Roman agreed.

I can't find anything about Minnie's background. Does the novel elaborate?

Here's some bloopers in an otherwise perfect film.

The neighbor from hell.

Here’s a commentary on the “Jewishness” of “Rosemary’s Baby,” the novel and the film.

In any event, it doesn’t make sense to me why a Jewish character(s) would be cavorting with Satan. The Jewish religion doesn’t recognize the existence of Satan.

R48 Literally!

[quote] r21 Who here has read the book? I hear it’s exactly like the movie.

It is, pretty much. The only real difference is right before she realizes she’s conceived, Rosemary gets so irked with self-involved Guy that she borrows Hutch’s cabin in the woods to go reflect in for a few days. She considers leaving him.

The book also specifies that the demon is “wonderfully big” inside her during the rape and that she climaxes.

It’s mentioned that Rosemary met Guy because she had a low level job at a television studio where Guy acted on a show. And after marrying they moved into Guy’s bachelor pad, the size of their immense kitchen at the Bramford. That’s why they’re looking for a new apartment.

[quote]R47 I can't find anything about Minnie's background. Does the novel elaborate?

No. Just that she’s from Bushyhead, Oklahoma.

I once read Roman P wanted Guy to get a role on Guiding Light due to its religious undertone, but Proctor and Gamble said hell no.

[quote] Just that she’s from Bushyhead, Oklahoma.

Insert joke here.

One of the defining moments at the start of my current relationship with my partner was us realizing this was both our favorite movie, and the way Minnie eats the cake comes up all the time in our house. I don't know how anyone could watch this scene and look at anything else! Also when Roman drips Vodka Blush on the floor and Minnie exclaims, "The carrrrrrrrrpet!" There isn't a moment of her screen-time that Ruth Gordon doesn't devour like she does that cake. When she licks her finger and tries to press down the hole in the wood flooring where Rosemary's dropped the knife at the end! Whenever one of us is sick we inevitably end up saying, "Just plain ordinary Liptons." Perfection.

[quote] I don't think her character was supposed to be Jewish.

Really? She’s almost the stereotype of a vulgar yenta.

[quote]Mini Castevet Eating Cake In Rosemary's Baby (1968)

You should see her sister Maxi put it away

When I read the book, it was so terrifying to me that at one point I threw it under the bed. I also think that Gordon's accent from Quincy, MA (which has almost disappeared) is a key component in her portrayal of Minnie. She is most decidedly not from the UWS, but perhaps drawn to New York because of her allegiance to Satan. -< Crackpot theory.

And it surely ranks as one the best Oscar wins of all time, as many have said.

[quote] “Gordon would go on to play a series of Jewish women, including a demented, overbearing Jewish mother in “Where’s Poppa?” (1970), a fun-loving free-spirited elderly Jewish Holocaust survivor in “Harold and Maude” (1971), and Becky Rosen in “Boardwalk” (1979).” From the article cited in R49

Gordon was an Episcopalian, born and raised in Quincy, MA, which is far from a bastion of Judaism. Nevertheless, she ended up playing Jewish women in several of her big hits. Obviously, she was a great actress and that included playing Jewish women convincingly.

Polanski, Jewish by birth but later converting to Christianity, surely condoned Gordon playing the role like a stereotypical Jewish woman. Maybe it was meant to be a distraction, as in, no one would think this Jewish yenta is a member of a satanic coven.

[quote] Polanski, Jewish by birth but later converting to Christianity…

Huh? He’s an theist.

R59 Ultimately true. The article that is linked in R49 stated that he attempted to become a Catholic, but he only went though the motions, and a priest eventually told him he wasn't going to beome Catholic.

[quote] Nevertheless, she ended up playing Jewish women in several of her big hits.

It happens.

She originated Dolly Levi in The Matchmaker on Broadway.

Polanski is or was a genius director. His best work in my opinion is The Pianist. He got the best possible performance from Adrien Brody. Oscar worthy by far. The entire film was perfect. I was rooting for the Best Picture oscar for it but wouldn't have been heartbroken if Gangs of New York won - a very worthy contender. But noooooo, Chicago was chosen. Idiot academy.

Polanski is a child rapist. He doesn't deserve shit.

You're right but it was a very well done film.

[quote] Polanski is a child rapist. He doesn't deserve shit.

Agreed, but Chicago remains garbage.

When I saw Rosemary's Baby when it was released I was awestruck by the size of her apartment. Hey, I was a teen and had no idea they were so large in Manhattan. I liked it it a lot, though.

[quote]She originated Dolly Levi in The Matchmaker on Broadway.

Dolly was Irish-American.

Oh agreed R66. Chicago is complete garbage. Polanski is also a child rapist. Gangs of New York should've won.

Oh and I'll go so far as to admit that Roman Polanski, child rapist, is also a very gifted film director. I consider RB one of the best films of all time. Chinatown is also a masterpiece. He still doesn't deserve shit because he raped a 13 year old.