The Housemaid
Structure:
Entertainment:
This stylish “sexy thriller” is a bit overdrawn in the theatrics, and anorexic in the story department.
There is a nice Main Character/Influence Character dynamic that plays as it should between the titular character and the older more wizened maid. However, there is no actual relationship between the two of them and thus, no story. As a consequence the film is plodding at times, with an ending that’s way overdone.
The biggest mistake in crafting this story was the missed opportunity to take advantage of the misattribution error that occurred in thinking that the Main Character was pregnant. A more complete story would have taken advantage of this inequity and crafted the main Overall Story around it. Unfortunately it didn’t and thus, the conflict is too straight and narrow.
There is also the cultural problem of the missing Main Character Throughline. Often missing altogether in Asian storytelling, the housemaid herself is vaguely sketched and barely hinted at and never fully explored. Difficult to become engaged with a film that doesn’t allow the Audience a doorway in.