‘The Housemaid’ Review
Stars: Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, Michele Morrone, Elizabeth Perkins, Indiana Elle, Amanda Joy | Written by Rebecca Sonnenshine, Freida McFadden | Directed by Paul Feig
Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried co-star in this adaptation of the best-selling thriller by Freida McFadden, directed by Paul Feig (A Simple Favour, Spy). Deliciously twisted and delightfully outrageous, The Housemaid is a glorious throwback to the heyday of ‘90s erotic thrillers and the likes of The Hand That Rocks The Cradle.
Sweeney plays Millie Calloway, a homeless drifter who’s just out of prison and who needs a job urgently, to satisfy her parole conditions. Faking her CV, she interviews for a housemaid position at the mansion home of wealthy Long Island housewife Nina Winchester (Seyfried), and is surprised when she’s offered the job almost immediately, wondering if it’s too good to be true.
Sure enough, Millie quickly discovers that Nina has something of a temper – perhaps the result of psychosis – and is given to weirdly gaslighting her. And when Nina’s handsome, charming husband Andrew (Brandon Sklenar) is kind towards Millie, she finds herself starting to fantasise about him, especially when an apparent mix-up means that they end up staying in the same hotel overnight, without Nina around. But what’s really going on?
The script, by Rebecca Sonnenshine, is packed with great twists, all of which it would be churlish to reveal here, as they are a large part of what makes the movie so much fun. Suffice it to say that there are early hints that something in the Winchester mansion isn’t quite right, and the various reveals add up to a wild ride.
Similarly, Feig’s direction is assured throughout, getting the tone exactly right – The Housemaid is a film that is fully aware of how outrageously trashy it is, and it really leans into that, skirting perilously close to tongue-in-cheek but nimbly avoiding outright camp. In addition, Feig pulls off the twists with aplomb, deploying an effective rewind technique at a crucial point to give the audience a different perspective.
To a degree then, The Housemaid plays a fun game of ‘Who’s the psychopath?’, since both Millie and Nina clearly have a dark side, while a perfectly cast Elizabeth Perkins adds an extra edge of weirdness as Andrew’s haughty mother, who clearly has an unhealthy relationship with her son.
The performances are a blast. Seyfried is particularly good, making Nina’s tantrums seem deliriously unhinged, and then switching into sinister coldness as she pulls off her latest mind-game with Millie. Sweeney is terrific too, keeping her powder dry for the first half of the film, but revealing hidden depths once she’s pushed too far.
Without giving anything away, the end result is extremely satisfying, with a degree of thematic resonance that feels appropriate for 2025. In short, The Housemaid is enormous fun, particularly if you’re nostalgic for ‘90s erotic thrillers. Highly recommended.
**** 4/5
The Housemaid is in cinemas from Boxing Day.
