“The Housemaid” thrills unsuspecting audiences
Over winter break, I had the privilege of seeing “The Housemaid,” a best-selling Freida McFadden psychological thriller novel, which was adapted into a movie and has significantly exceeded its projected box office earnings. Typically, movie adaptations of popular books fail to live up to the hype of the book. However, the Housemaid was the exception to this norm, exceeding my expectations and constantly making me guess what was next. As a strictly rom-com movie watcher, it is rare I find myself enjoying a thriller. However, considering how incredible the books were, I had to step outside of my comfort zone to see how the movie measured up to the book.
While the movie takes creative liberty with some scenes in order to create a dramatized visual effect, the plot is basically the same, with a few notable exceptions. Even if you have read the book and know the ending, the movie will not disappoint. The ending followed a similar climax to the novel, with a few expectations that kept me guessing. While watching a movie is supposed to be an emotional rollercoaster for the viewer, “The Housemaid’s” characters all had a dramatically bumpy ride.
The main character, Millie Calloway, portrayed by Sydney Sweeney, is a girl in her late twenties with a checkered past, looking for a job when she decides to become a live-in maid for the Winchesters, a rich socialite family in Long Island. Although Sweeny’s performance was fantastic, Amanda Seyfried, who played Nina Winchester, the wife, stole the show. For those who have read the book, she was frighteningly convincing and was exactly what I imagined as I read. Her manic portrayal of who seemed to be a normal housewife was frightening and attention-grabbing in the best possible way. The husband of the rich family, Andrew Winchester, is no stranger to the book adaptation as he similarly played Atlas in Colleen Hoover’s “It Ends with Us.” His performance was likewise exceptional and similarly overshadowed by Seyfried’s portrayal. Overall, the film’s pace and character development over the course of the movie made it impossible to look away. Even the most mundane scenes had some type of twisting significance. The dramatic storytelling in the novel was delivered flawlessly by all of the characters.
“The Housemaid” is one of three stories in the “Housemaid” series. Following fantastic reviews and public reactions, confirmation of a sequel based on the second book has been announced. However, Seyfried’s character only appears in the first book, with the second and third books following similar plots centering around Sweeny’s character. Enzo, the gardener with a brief cameo in the movie, becomes more prevalent, along with Millie’s past being revisited. The thematic aspects of this thriller left audiences craving more. I, along with fans of “The Housemaid” series, have high hopes for the second movie. As anticipation for the sequel builds, “The Housemaid” has set the bar high for thriller books to come to life.
