NEW YORK (OSV News) — As a mystery in which no one is who they appear to be, the psychological horror film “The Housemaid” (Lionsgate) has a lot of entertaining suspense to offer viewers. Yet the movie is also a gory revenge fantasy that dabbles in grotesquery and sadistic behavior, thus severely circumscribing its appropriate audience.
Director Paul Feig’s adaptation of Freida McFadden’s 2022 novel has an underlying message about female empowerment and the horrific nature of the men who attempt to control women. But it’s dressed up as glossy escapist fun and as a showcase allowing its two lead actors, Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney, to pull out all the stops.
Millie Calloway (Sweeney) is a down-on-her-luck ex-convict. She desperately needs to find a job to stay on parole.
An opportunity presents itself when Millie is offered a position as live-in housekeeper at the gated Long Island mansion of Nina Winchester (Seyfried), who lives there with her handsome husband, Andrew (Brandon Sklenar). Millie will also be expected to serve as a sometime nanny to the couple’s petulant, overly indulged daughter, Cece (Indiana Elle).
Millie’s bedroom is a cramped former storage closet that can only be locked from the outside. This is a major plot point, since she’s not the only one eventually confined in the room as the saga proceeds.
Milie is trying to keep her secret, but it turns out Nina has hers as well. At first cheerfully dotty, Nina goes on to exhibit a dark side that Millie eventually learns is schizophrenia not controlled by medication alone.
Thus Millie has to put up with a lot and avoid complaining if she’s to keep her job. And the pressure escalates as Nina makes unreasonable demands on Millie’s time, then snoops sufficiently to discover everything about her background.
Andrew is always around to console Millie after one of Nina’s outbursts, and occasionally provides soothing comments about “living your best life.” This eventually leads to an illicit romance with carefully choreographed scenes of the duo’s sexual encounters.
Can Millie keep her secret? Is Nina as unbalanced as she appears? And who’s taking care of Cece?
Despite its outdated portrayal of mental illness, screenwriter Rebecca Sonnenshine’s script keeps the twists and turns coming at high speed in a story in which no one ever gets even a glimpse of happiness or security.
The film contains adulterous sexual activity, rear male and partial female nudity, physical and knife violence, mature references, pervasive rough language and fleeting profanity. The OSV News classification is L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
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