US EditionMovie review: Sweeney, Seyfried rule sexy, fraught ‘Housemaid’ tension
- Dec. 19: Director Paul Feig leads a cast including Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney for a Dec. 19 release, distributed by Lionsgate and adapted from Freida McFadden's novel.
- Freida McFadden's bestselling novel, which sold 3.5 million copies, spent 130 weeks on the New York Times list and was translated into 45 languages, inspired the film adaptation by Rebecca Sonnenshine, with producers Todd Lieberman and Laura Fischer.
- Inside the Winchester mansion, Nina Winchester's violent tirades terrorize Millie Calloway, a down-on-her-luck ex-prisoner on parole in a live-in maid job she cannot quit.
- Critics say the film is a steamy, twisty guilty pleasure that works as holiday counterprogramming and showcases Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney as executive producers with standout performances.
- Stylistic choices like gore, eroticism and a Taylor Swift song amplify Paul Feig, director's operatic, high-camp tone and highlight a broader film trend toward heightened fantasy.
34 Articles
34 Articles
<em>Housemaid</em>: A Room of One’s Own
The Housemaid is not a remake of the classic 1960 South Korean film by that name, which has been remade a bunch of times in a bunch of different countries. Rather, it’s based on Freida McFadden’s 2022 novel, which has since been followed by three sequels and enough stand-alone books to make Stephen King look as blocked as latter-day J.D. Salinger. This comes at a price, as McFadden’s volume feels like the product of someone cranking out fiction …
Movie review: ‘The Housemaid’ a trashy treat for holiday season
By Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service Director Paul Feig has proved himself to be the preeminent purveyor of the finest high-camp trash one can find at the movie theater these days — and that’s a compliment. If Feig is serving up the trash, then call me a raccoon, because I’m ready to dive in. Feig’s special sauce when it comes to these soapy, female-driven thrillers like “A Simple Favor,” and now “The Housemaid,” adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine f…
The Housemaid review: Amanda Seyfried shines in a satisfyingly scary chiller that doesn't take itself too seriously
It’s rarely easy when a job requires you to nest full-time in somebody else’s house, especially if your boss is unhinged to the point where her moods swing as much as one of Tarzan’s jungle creepers.Desperate times call for desperate measures, though, so recently paroled jailbird Millie (Sydney Sweeney) fudges her CV to secure gainful employment as live-in maid to a well-do-family, in order to avoid being sent back behind bars.If the above reads…
Marin Independent Journal
Review: ‘Housemaid’ serves up thrills, chills and bloody satire
Santa left us a present this holiday season and it is exactly what we didn’t know we needed: A twisty, psychological horror-thriller with nudity that’s all wrapped up in an empowerment message. “The Housemaid” is Paul Feig’s delicious, satirical look at the secret depravity of the ultra-rich, but it’s so well constructed that’s it’s not clear who’s naughty or nice. Halfway through, the movie zigs and everything you expected zags. It’s almost imp…
The Housemaid: this dark, sexy thriller is a seriously satisfying watch
Based on the bestselling novel by Freida McFadden, The Housemaid is a dark, sexy and satisfying thriller with plenty of twists to enjoy along the way. Millie (Sydney Sweeney) applies for a job as a housemaid for the wealthy Winchester family. We first meet her as she pulls up to the grand Winchester house in her run-down car – a gated mansion with echoes of the sinister and mysterious Manderley in Hitchcock’s Rebecca. What secrets might be conta…
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