The Housemaid
IFC Films | Release Date: January 21, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
68
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 21 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerJan 29, 2011
It's a deliciously perverse melodrama. Read full review
80
MovielineStephanie ZacharekJan 19, 2011
This is a household in which the rules are very formal, and they're matched by the formality of the filmmaking. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezMar 17, 2011
The graphic sex scenes radiate an uncommon heat, and Im can pull off a hugely effective shock when he wants to. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianStan HallMar 4, 2011
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. Read full review
75
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsMar 4, 2011
Im Sang-soo has crafted an erotic thriller whose cool beauty speaks for itself. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyFeb 17, 2011
While the film grows increasingly preposterous in its final act, the enigmatic performances of Youn and Jeon carry the day. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy BurrFeb 17, 2011
Gorgeously shot (by Lee Hyung Duk) and well worth seeing for Jeon's deceptively simple performance. Unlike its heroine, though, it gets away without a scratch. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsFeb 3, 2011
The acting's very strong throughout, though few would argue that the final half-hour satisfies either as suspense, or narrative, or social observation. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertFeb 2, 2011
This story is told by writer-director Im Sang-soo with cool, elegant cinematography and sinuous visual movements. The dominant mood is gothic, with the persistent sadomasochistic undertones that seem inescapable in so much Korean cinema. Read full review
75
New York PostV.A. MusettoJan 21, 2011
It is beautifully shot, with impeccable acting and visual detail. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumJan 20, 2011
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. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesSheri Linden Jan 27, 2011
Sleek, erotic and suspenseful, at least for the first hour, and even with the piece wobbling between dark psychology and campy soap, the cast is compelling as it navigates the uncertainty. Read full review
70
The New York TimesA.O. ScottJan 20, 2011
An admiring, clever remake of Kim Ki-young's legendary film of the same title from 1960, this version, directed by Im Sang-soo, is at once more explicit than the original and less kinky. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterMaggie LeeJan 18, 2011
The outcome is a flamingly sexy soap opera whose satire on high society is sometimes as savage as Claude Chabrol's "La ceremonie." Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubScott TobiasJan 20, 2011
Though impeccably photographed and acted, The Housemaid begins to feel stifling and airless once Im's thesis about the abuses of the powerful starts to drive the film to a foregone conclusion. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanJan 21, 2011
Korean director Im Sang-soo can't improve on Kim Ki-young's 1960 original, a jarring and operatic cult favorite. Still, he does tweak the themes in intriguing fashion. Read full review
60
Time OutKeith UhlichJan 18, 2011
The major change is that the domestic, Eun-yi (the great Jeon, star of "Secret Sunshine"), is now more of a victim than an aggressor. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliFeb 3, 2011
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. Read full review
50
VarietyJustin ChangJan 18, 2011
This high-end softcore thriller is juicily watchable from start to over-the-top finish, but its gleeful skewering of the upper classes comes off as curiously passe, a luxe exercise in one-note nastiness. Read full review
50
Village VoiceNicolas RapoldJan 18, 2011
Despite eccentric touches, like a handheld street-shot overture and Grand Guignol Omen references, there's little difference between this story and soap-opera intrigue. Read full review
50
Boxoffice MagazineVadim RizovJan 17, 2011
With high production values and a glossily enjoyable mise-en-scene, the film is watchable. Read full review
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