#REVIEW: “THE HOUSEMAID”

Review by Amanda Gilmore for Mr. Will Wong

Erotic tension, psychological manipulation, and buried secrets…count us in!

Based on Freida McFadden’s hit novel, The Housemaid follows out-on-parole Millie (Sydney Sweeney), who lands a job as a live-in maid for the wealthy Winchester family. When Millie has her interview with the composed, kind Nina (Amanda Seyfried), she thinks the job will be a breeze. The house is spotless already, and Nina and her husband Andrew (Brandon Sklenar) look like the picture-perfect family. But she quickly finds out that there’s more than meets the eye.

Director Paul Feig made a name for himself making comedies like Spy and the massive-hit Bridesmaids. He reinvented himself when he made A Simple Favour. With it, he applied his comedic background to a modern Hitchcockian Thriller. Here, he continues down this same path and delivers wickedly entertaining results. The Housemaid feels like a campy A Simple Favor with more sex and gore. We mean this in the best possible way.

The first half of The Housemaid plays out as a straightforward drama. On Millie’s first day, she awakens to Nina in hysterics over missing PTA notes. Nina quickly blames the missing notes on Millie. Tensions spiral from there, with Nina consistently gaslighting and blaming Millie. To make matters worse, Millie and Andrew are immediately attracted to each other, which only amplifies the tension within the sprawling mansion. But Mille can’t quit. If she doesn’t keep a job, she’ll have to serve the rest of her sentence back in prison…Then the twist arrives.

Don’t worry, we won’t ruin it for you. So, you can keep reading!

Before the twist, there were some sprinkled notes of camp, but Feig reigned it in. It’s mainly found in the formidable performance from Seyfried. Make no mistake, this is her Movie. She delivers absolute conviction to Nina’s sadistic torment. Seyfried is terrifying while providing the camp vibe Feig is building toward. She’s our ice-queen of the year, and we love it! It’s in the second half that the camp becomes fully unleashed.

It’s also during this time that Sweeney comes alive. Before this refreshing twist, her performance is reserved. It makes sense, Millie’s keeping her criminal past a secret from her wealthy employers. But after the twist, Sweeney has fun with her character. We only wish there had been some of this feisty personality earlier on. It may have led to some delightfully mischievous scenes between Sweeney and Seyfried, rather than Millie accepting Nina’s cruelty.

The Housemaid is a wickedly fun film about fake appearances and dismantling the masks. There’s also the theme of class at play. Andrew comes from wealth. The sprawling mansion is his. Nina comes from humble beginnings. She married into this wealth. She signed a prenup; all of it can get taken away from her. Millie comes from nothing, and she may never attain wealth. Being on probation, she found it next to impossible to find a job. Class status becomes integral to the narrative once those masks come off (which is around the time the twist arrives).

Cineplex Pictures release THE HOUSEMAID on Friday, December 19, 2025.