Lee Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "ira-levin"

Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Ira Levin's classic horror thriller is a masterpiece in plotting and suspense.

Rosemary's Baby is one of those stories that has developed to become mythology, a story that is so well-known that people know it without having read it, as part of a culture as folklore. It's a wonder it took me so long to finally read it. I loved it and couldn't put it down.

Having seen the equally classic 1968 film (the novel was published in 1967), I knew the plot well and the twists in the tale. Rosemary and her husband Guy acquire a highly sought-after apartment and soon become friendly with eccentric, elderly couple, Minnie and Roman Castavet. Their situation appears idyllic - a young couple moving into their new home, spending time with their interesting, kindly neighbours, Guy seeking his big acting break, Rosemary hoping for a baby.

Levin expertly layers the tension as the novel progresses, hinting at the witchcraft and Satanism twisted throughout the building's history and an apparent suicide that begins the young couple's relationship with the Castavets, who develop from harmless to unsettling, to sinister, to menacing. Soon it appears all the world may be conspiring against Rosemary and she struggles to know who to trust as the novel hurtles towards its nightmarish conclusion.

With underlying themes of religion with witchcraft as its enemy, with specific references to Catholicism, it is perhaps ironic that this modern scheme for the downfall of humankind is triggered by a man's greed and ambition leading to his betrayal of a woman and allowing her to be defiled and used for her body, as opposed to the concept of Original Sin where a woman made an error in judgement when tempted into betrayal by the same forces of darkness. In this novel, we know she would never be so foolish.

After fifty years, Rosemary's Baby remains relevant, authentic, and most of all thrilling, in its telling of a story of good versus evil, and the lengths human beings may go to in pursuit of their beliefs and desires.

The story continues in Levin's final novel, 'Son of Rosemary'.



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Son of Rosemary by Ira Levin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


An enjoyable conclusion to the horrors that began with the classic 'Rosemary's Baby'.

Ira Levin's sequel picks up over thirty years following the conclusion of the original, with Rosemary awakening from a coma which appears to have been the result of a curse cast by the coven of the original novel. She soon learns that her son, Andy, has grown up to become the new Messiah - either a bizarre twist of fate or truthfully a False Messiah of prophecy.

Taking advantage of her celebrity status as the woman who awoke unharmed after decades lying in a coma, she connects with Andy on the global stage and gets to know her son all over again as the man he has become since she last saw him as a child. Some may find what follows a little slow, but as the novel progresses you realise Levin is subtly laying the foundations for what is to come later.

The conclusion to Part Two is a clever revelation, with the paranoia of the first novel now fully returning, with Rosemary unsure who she can trust, finding Andy has more secrets than she wished to find. This is explored more fully in Part Three, as Rosemary investigates her son and his colleagues and their organisation.

*SPOILERS*The ending completely took me by surprise. It has proved controversial, but I found it quite ambiguous. The obvious interpretation is that the events of both novels are an elaborate nightmare Rosemary suffers. This would sit well with the dream-like and nightmarish sequences of both novels, and perhaps doesn't take anything away from the masterful storytelling. My first thought when Rosemary awoke with Guy was that this was her version of Hell, seeing as she had been heading there with Satan at the conclusion to the previous scene. To relive her suffering over and over, never quite sure if it's real or imagined, would be Hell indeed.

There is also the suggestion that the events of both novels are a premonition, a dream telling Rosemary of the potential dangers and horrors of the future. When Hutch mentions the puzzle to solve the anagram of 'Roast Mules' which recurred throughout the novel - something Rosemary had not heard prior to her dream - it delivers a final cold shiver that perhaps she has not escaped her fate after all, that the events of both novels are yet to come.

As Levin's seventh and final novel, 'Son of Rosemary' is a solid ending to a superb body of work and a suitably discomforting follow-up to 'Rosemary's Baby'.



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This Perfect Day by Ira Levin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


A classic dystopian thriller from master of suspense Ira Levin.

In future human society, the world is run by a central supercomputer, known as UniComp. There is no crime, no war, no disease, none of the perils or the trials and tribulations of our own society. Life is seemingly perfect. But there is a darker side to UniComp’s regime – while people do not experience any of life’s pains, they do not experience its pleasures either; living an orderly life, following rules and regulations for the greater good of this society; most crucially, they do not have choices – their free will has been taken away.

As a child, Chip is shown the true face of UniComp by his grandfather and he begins to question this existence. What if he did have choices? But UniComp’s regime is tightly controlled – each member of their society undergoes regular treatments, while anyone who experiences 'unwell' thoughts is encouraged to seek help; anyone witnessed to be behaving strangely should be referred for help – thoughts and behaviours that go against UniComp’s ideals are symptoms of illness and UniComp wishes to cure them.

As an adult, Chip is drawn into a small group of rebels, who meet in secrecy and have found a way to trick UniComp’s treatment regime and experience the true reality of life. They engage in the pleasures of food, sex and tobacco, experience the pleasures of literature and art. But Chip soon begins to question – could there be more than this? Is there a chance they could escape UniComp entirely and live freely – free to choose, free to love?

With the chance of escape along with a fellow rebel, with whom he has fallen in love, Chip risks everything the rebels have. We follow his perilous journey and finally a plan to destroy UniComp entirely – leading him to the devastating truth at the heart of their society.

Ira Levin is a master of mystery and suspense, and lifting the veil on the darker side of humanity. I absolutely loved ‘This Perfect Day’, finding myself quickly immersed in the tale of a disturbing future and the rebellion against it. Well-written, with tightly-woven plotting and rich characterisation, Levin’s dystopian novel, written in 1969, is a classic of the genre and helped define its future (along with George Orwell’s ‘1984’, published 1949), featuring many of the themes and circumstances that would become genre classics.

Gripping, thrilling and unsettling, ‘This Perfect Day’ is a gem of a novel and not to be missed.



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The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Ira Levin’s chilling horror thriller, a satirical tale of patriarchy and latent misogyny, first published in 1972.

Joanna Eberhart has recently moved to the idyllic town of Stepford with her husband, Walter, and their two children. On the surface, Stepford is full of beauty – beautiful houses, beautiful gardens, beautiful neighbourhoods, beautiful women. Joanna hopes they can be happy here. She is a photographer and used to the bustle of city life. It isn’t long before feelings of discomfort creep in and she begins to believe that something sinister may lie beneath the veneer of Stepford.

Most of the women in town appear quite content with their roles as wives, mothers and domestic goddesses. Joanna despairs at the lack of independence, drive and substance to her female neighbours, while the men run the town from the heart of the Men’s Association. Still, she perseveres, continuing with her photography and becoming friends with two other women who thankfully are not the typical wives of Stepford.

Levin deftly builds on the underlying unease as Walter becomes more deeply involved with the activities of the Men’s Association. Tensions begin to develop in their marriage. Joanna meets some of the other members of the Men’s Association – amongst them an illustrator famous for drawing women to look their most (stereotypically) physically beautiful; a researcher of human speech; a pioneering designer of Disneyland robots. When the first of her friends undergoes a dramatic transformation over the course of a weekend spent with her husband, Joanna is both disturbed and suspicious.

Tension builds to terror as the truth about Stepford is revealed; Joanna desperately planning to escape before it is too late. The final scene is expertly disquieting, underscoring the satire in a way that is, of course, the most realistic for the time and still prevalent today.

Much like many of Levin’s novels, ‘The Stepford Wives’ has been adapted for the screen – first as a theatrical feature film in 1975, starring Katherine Ross. This spawned three television movie sequels – ‘Revenge of the Stepford Wives’ (1980); ‘The Stepford Children’ (1987); and ‘The Stepford Husbands’ (1996)’. A comedic remake, starring Nicole Kidman and Glenn Close, was released theatrically in 2004.

It has also inspired its own derogatory term – to call a woman a “Stepford Wife” is to label her submissive and conforming to the stereotypical subservient role where her husband’s needs, career and opinions come before her own. Indeed, “Stepford” has become more widely used as an adjective for anyone who appears to be blindly, almost robotically, obedient and conforms without question.

Both the novel and original film inspired much controversy – many feminist groups found it sexist and called for boycotts, despite the sub-text being very much anti-male establishment. Others may have appreciated that subtext, yet described it as a rip-off of the women’s movement. But controversy has done nothing to dent its enduring popularity; both the book and original film have become cult classics. Much of Levin’s work is hailed as a blueprint for the future of their respective genres, and ‘The Stepford Wives’ is no exception.

When you’re seeking escapism, nothing achieves it better than an Ira Levin classic – ‘The Stepford Wives’ is a taut and thrilling slice of sinister satire.



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The Boys from Brazil by Ira Levin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


A gripping high-stakes thriller that unlocks an international conspiracy masterminded by Auschwitz’s Angel of Death.

In September 1974, a group of men gathers at a Japanese restaurant at the behest of one man, who enlists them to murder ninety-four men across Europe and North America. All of these men are former SS officers, still loyal to the Nazi cause. The man who has called them to action is Dr Josef Mengele, who escaped to South America after the Second World War, avoiding capture and trial.

Yakov Liebermann, who investigates war crimes and is famed for bringing multiple Nazis to justice in recent years, receives an urgent telephone call from a young man who claims to have a recording of a meeting at which Mengele discusses a plot to bring about the Fourth Reich. Despite the call being cut short, it troubles Liebermann and he decides to look into the man’s claims.

Liebermann uncovers evidence that suggests what the caller claimed may have been true. Men have begun dying – men of the same age, all with younger wives and teenage sons. But why have these victims been selected, and what connects them? The answer provides terrifying implications for the future and the truth behind Mengele’s scheme, one which began many years before as he conducted his cruel experiments at Auschwitz.

In a race against time, Liebermann strives to bring an end of Mengele’s plot, the fate of the future hanging in the balance.

Ira Levin is a true master, his novels intricately plotted and devastatingly realised. ‘The Boys from Brazil’ is an outstanding thriller, all the more chilling as it was inspired by the true events of the Holocaust and features Mengele, who, at the time of publication in 1976, was still alive and in hiding in South America. Levin was always ahead of his time; his plot hinged on the concept of human cloning – all the more unsettlingly plausible in today’s climate.

Raising many ethical and moral questions, the novel twists and turns, tightening its grip as it hurtles towards the climatic showdown between Liebermann and Mengele. It is both a gripping drama and a study of humanity, as well as a warning from history that the past can never be allowed to repeat itself.

Levin’s novels are often the blueprint of their respective genres – this is no exception, a precursor to many conspiracy and political thrillers. The novel was also adapted into a film in 1978, starring Gregory Peck and Laurence Olivier. In whatever medium, Levin's storytelling remains immortal.

‘The Boys from Brazil’ is classic Ira Levin – a study of evil and the nefarious schemes that are bred in the dark shadows of the human mind.



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Sliver by Ira Levin

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A delicious sliver of menace from a master of suspense.

Someone is always watching. Literary editor Kay Norris moves into her new high-rise apartment, unknowingly becoming the subject of someone's obsession.

Befriending some of her neighbours and soon embarking on a relationship with one of them, Kay continues about her daily life, oblivious to the scrutiny, unaware of the increasing danger she is in.

The tenants are living a real-life soap opera - the footage live, raw and unedited. Behind the scenes is a puppet-master whose fantasies must be fulfilled, and self-preservation guaranteed, at all costs.

Novelist and playwright Ira Levin wrote seven novels; 'Sliver' being the sixth, published in 1991. A short, sharp, fast-paced erotic thriller, it deftly deals with its theme of observing the lives of others, developing into obsession, drawing parallels to ways in which viewers and readers devour fiction and the culture of celebrity. Along with her stalker, we observe Kay go about her daily life. We witness the addictive and compulsive relationship that develops, the revelations of a twisted hobby, and the growing mistrust and burgeoning paranoia as Kay unravels more of the past.

Levin's satirical take on stalking and voyeurism through the apartment block's advanced clandestine visual and audio surveillance system takes on a chilling plausibility in our days of reality TV, social media and mass use of surveillance and security cameras. Much like George Orwell's '1984', albeit in a more light-hearted and non-political way, 'Sliver' was ahead of its time in exploring the extent to which we would one day be monitored and watched, either knowingly or unknowingly, voluntarily or involuntarily.

There are echoes of some of Levin's earlier novels - notably his first, 'A Kiss Before Dying'; as well as 'Rosemary's Baby' and 'The Stepford Wives' in the dynamics of the relationships. The novel once again demonstrates Levin as a master of his craft, as he builds suspense and unease in the manner of an artist, the result always as irresistible and entertaining as it may be unsettling and thought-provoking.

The novel was also adapted for the screen for the 1993 film of the same name, starring Sharon Stone, hot on the heels of the success of 'Basic Instinct' (and adapted by its screenwriter). The plot translates well to the screen, though with changed character names and an alternate ending.

A thrilling volume in Ira Levin's compelling body of work, 'Sliver' is another portrait of the way in which evil can puncture its way into our lives, watching us, biding its time, without us being conscious of its existence.



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