A Thriller Out of Season

On January 1, they aired the non–New Year psychological thriller The Maid, based on Frida McFadden’s 2022 bestseller.

What does the on-screen confrontation between two Hollywood blondes, Amanda Seyfried and Sidney Sweeney, look like? We can’t wait to tell you.

A Desperate Maid and a Perfect Family

Millie, a young woman with a dark past, sleeps in her car. Nina Winchester, a gorgeous blonde, exudes warmth and wealth, turning her life into something that looks utterly fabulous.

She has a daughter, Cecilia, and a husband, Andrew – a muscular Men’s Health hunk who strolls around the house in a spotless white T-shirt, enough to shame even a hungover John McClane.

It feels like pure luck when Millie lands a job with this family as their live-in maid. She kills several birds with one stone: a steady income, a comfortable place to live, and no questions from the police. If only the unfortunate woman knew what a trap she was walking into.

From Beach Read to Tabloid Thriller

Director Paul Feig strayed significantly from the original novel – a beach read. The filmmakers did make changes for example, the book lacks the film’s final showdown.
What the film adaptation does have plenty of is cheap tabloid sensationalism, which practically oozes from every pore.

Overall, this is not about complex gray morality, because in the end, good and evil are as obvious here as the difference between day and night.

Rather, it is about a modified version of Fifty Shades of Grey, diluted with hints of the cunning Gone Girl (2014). Although in terms of quality, Fincher’s hit and Fig’s new release are like night and day.

In the local world order, the game almost always goes one way, which reduces the narrative to primitive one-sidedness. Moreover, the latter manifests itself everywhere Millie goes. By the end of the film, one gets the impression that she literally attracts bad people around her, let’s not get specific, and it’s as if it’s her superhero ability.

The message about domestic violence and class inequality fades into the background amid certain illogicalities and the overall unpretentiousness of what is happening on screen. The actors are pleasant to watch, but only Saifred really stands out.

Performances: One Clear Winner

The Euphoria star fades into the background next to her older colleague Amanda Seyfried, who delivers a pitch-perfect portrait of concentrated madness and emerges as the film’s true highlight.

Brandon Sklenar mostly stays within the confines of his role as attractive furniture with a million-dollar smile. And the silent gardener played by Michele Morrone is not even worth mentioning.

Final Verdict

The film may entertain loyal fans, but it will disappoint viewers seeking true psychological suspense, settling instead for mediocrity dressed up as triumph.