X
- 2011
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
- 2011
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
Summary Eun-yi is hired as a nanny in an lavish mansion by businessman Hoon and his very pregnant wife, Hae-ra. When Eun-yi is seduced by the father of the house, she becomes the unwitting victim in a series of traps laid by the women of the house—Hae-ra, her villainous mother, and their seemingly loyal but increasingly bitter housekeeper. Inten...
Directed By: Im Sang-soo
Written By: Kim Ki-young, Im Sang-soo
- 2011
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
- 2011
- Not Rated
- IFC Films
- 1 h 47 m
The Housemaid
68
6.4
Where to Watch
Summary Eun-yi is hired as a nanny in an lavish mansion by businessman Hoon and his very pregnant wife, Hae-ra. When Eun-yi is seduced by the father of the house, she becomes the unwitting victim in a series of traps laid by the women of the house—Hae-ra, her villainous mother, and their seemingly loyal but increasingly bitter housekeeper. Inten...
Directed By: Im Sang-soo
Written By: Kim Ki-young, Im Sang-soo
Where to Watch
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 21 Critic Reviews
68
71% Positive
15 Reviews
15 Reviews
29% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 21 Critic Reviews
68
71% Positive
15 Reviews
15 Reviews
29% Mixed
6 Reviews
6 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
It's a deliciously perverse melodrama.
Falls somewhere between the kind of trashy, campy romp that's on movie channels in the middle of the night (though with far superior acting and production values) and the dark psychological thrillers of Kim Ki-duk.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 25 User Ratings
6.4
36% Positive
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
64% Mixed
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 25 User Ratings
6.4
36% Positive
9 Ratings
9 Ratings
64% Mixed
16 Ratings
16 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]
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if you find the ending histrionic or excessively and annoyingly melodramatic, it means you have been thinking in a hollywood formulaic manner. it's wonderful to appreciate as a whole, a show-don't-tell movie, has a wonderful soundtrack, and it's sexy. but at the back of my head, i ask, is this an anti-abortion, anti-classist propaganda? maybe not.
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The acting's very strong throughout, though few would argue that the final half-hour satisfies either as suspense, or narrative, or social observation.
The class warfare in The Housemade feels dated, but there's something nicely kinky in this lusciously photographed erotic Korean thriller by Im Sang-soo.
The outcome is a flamingly sexy soap opera whose satire on high society is sometimes as savage as Claude Chabrol's "La ceremonie."
In creating his modern homage to the classic film, Im has twisted all the heated melodrama into a satiric - and in the end, surrealist - attack on the terrors of the polished upper class.
With high production values and a glossily enjoyable mise-en-scene, the film is watchable.
This review contains no spoilers.
Whatever your first impression of the title of this movie is wrong. This is a tragic drama of course revolving around a housemaid. It is again another fine piece of work from the Korean cinema. The theme is around one of the classic human-relationship problems.
The movies has excellent performances all around and benefits from actors such as Lee Jung-Jae (New World) and Jeon Do-yeon (Secret Sunshine). Character building is quite adequate with Hae-ra's mom shaping up very quickly. Eun-yi's (Jeon Do-yeon) character get more expressive progressively. I must say the most interesting and most complex character is that of the buttress and Yeo-jeong Yoon does a fine job of acting them at each turn.
The score of the movie is an original pieces of classical-style and deserves appreciation as such. This is one of the many things that Koreans have mastered so well.
You'll love the cinematography as well however I found that some of the shots (tracking, hi-angled) were unnecessary. The score, the acting and the plot carry the movie forward so powerfully that nothing else seems to be needed. The settings and the snowy grounds definitely helped.
To me the movie or the story seemed to have another hidden conclusion. And that is the message of inevitability in life. At times and under circumstances a few steps can seal your fate forever. You can fight to change this slightly but you can change the direction of where the life is taking you.
Overall if you like dramas I strongly recommend this well-executed movie.
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To be an erotic thriller, the truth is that it came to feel too passive at times, yet the characters are defined and the film is elegant and suspenseful enough to keep you wondering about when things are going to explode.
The Housemaid is unquestionably ordinary, but it fulfills its purpose of entertaining and at the same time of making you think a little about the situations of submission, power and privilege the story presents.
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A remake of a classic masterpiece is always been a thankless task, but since half a century has passed since 1960, when Ki-young Kim
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Grade: C - Not a very bad movie but i didn't liked it much. Beautiful set pieces, visually stunning, pretentious acting, too much holding back apart from a few good scenes. Overall the ending was quite strong which i liked .... erotic thriller that acts like a indie arthouse flick but fails in both ways.
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Production Company
Sidus FNH-Benex Cinema Fund 1,
Michigan Venture Capital,
CJ Venture Investment,
Stareast Digital Laboratory,
Hanwha Entertainment Fund No. 1,
Mirovision,
Sidus
Release Date Jan 21, 2011
Duration 1 h 47 m
Rating Not Rated
Tagline When opportunity knocks, answer at your own risk.
Awards
Grand Bell Awards, South Korea
• 1 Win & 6 Nominations
Asian Film Awards
• 2 Wins & 4 Nominations
Cinemanila International Film Festival
• 2 Wins & 3 Nominations
