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#usfilm — Public Fediverse posts

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  1. Since I have not the slightest interest in American football, I went to the cinema and saw "The Housemaid".

    I'd give it a grade of B- -. The plot is silly and uses an absurd deus ex machina in the final act. Another clumsy device is a lengthy voice over flashback, and I felt that film ran too long.

    Recently I was discussing Sydney Sweeney with @isa , who said that she not think much of Sweeney's acting skills. Nothing in this performance gave me much reason to dissent from this judgement. She is supposed to be a sexbomb, but the word that came to my mind to describe her was "inert".

    So why not C, D, or even F as a grade?

    In the first place, the film is interesting as a social document, being a good example of "Hollywood populism". The rich are shown as living lives of cruelty, dishonesty, and exploitation behind the oh so perfect facades of their dwellings. Because this is Hollywood populism, as opposed to the straight up variety, the implied condemnation of their parasitic existence is blended with a drooling over the luxurious housing , dining, and other trappings of affluence. Students of gender will have much to note about power, conflict and solidarity in the film, while students of men's bodies will note Brandon Sklenar's biceps and bottom.

    What really pushes the grade up is Amanda Seyfried's performance. She switches between syrupy PTA momness to scarily capricious psycho without veering into the straightforwardly ridiculous, and it is her acting that engages the viewer's attention and makes it more than barely watchable.

    I have no interest in reading the novel upon which the film is based.

    #TheHousemaid #Film #Movie #USFilm #Hollywood #SydneySweeney #AmandaSeyfried

    The Housemaid -- Trailer
    youtu.be/48CtX6OgU3s?si=Zzfs02