With the recent release of “The Housemaid”, a new psychological thriller film adaptation of Freida McFadden’s bestselling novel, students are sharing mixed reactions to how the story was shown on the screen. Starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, the film has gained attention from a range of audiences thanks to social media platforms like TikTok. 

Students who read the book before watching the movie noticed more changes in plot twists and character development.

Junior Reese Schulman, who read the novel before seeing the film, felt the adaptation didn’t have as much intensity and suspense as the book did.

“I didn’t think the movie had as much build-up to the plot-twist because it was much shorter, making it seem more rushed than the book,” Schulman said. 

Schulman also pointed out differences in how certain characters were portrayed.

“In the movie they don’t really have a lot about Enzo’s character which I thought made his character seem less involved and important. They made a couple of subtle changes to the movie as well that were unnecessary,” Schulman said. 

On the other hand, students who only watched the movie described a more unpredictable experience. 

Junior Allie Arefiev, who has never read the novel before, said the plot twist stood out the most. 

“I think not reading the book before I watched the movie allowed me to be less prepared for any plot twists and I got to be completely caught off guard,” Arefiev said. 

Junior Molly Brisman shared a similar opinion, noting that she would prefer to read the book after watching the movie adaptation.

“I will definitely be reading the book after this movie, which I think would be more enjoyable because it would be like watching extra clips of the movie that they left out,” Brisman said. 

Arefiev also mentioned that watching the movie convinced her to read the book.

“I don’t typically read, but I think I will read the book now that I watched the movie. I just want to see if the plot is different, and if it is, then I think it would be cool to see a spinoff of the movie. Also, this way I can picture the characters because I have already seen who they are on the screen,” Arefiev said. 

Students credited marketing on social media and friend recommendations as reasons for the film’s popularity. 

“I kept seeing ads and promotions for the movie on TikTok, and all of my friends were raving about it, which made me really want to watch it,” Arefiev said.

On the contrary, Schulman was convinced to watch it solely based on the popular actors in the movie. 

“I saw the actors who were playing each part and was immediately buying a ticket. I think the casting was amazing and exactly what I pictured while reading. Not to mention, I recognized some of my favorite actors, which also convinced me to watch it,” Schulman said. 

As “The Housemaid” continues to gain popularity, Brisman suggests that reading the book prior would have significantly changed her experience watching the movie. 

“I definitely think that reading the book beforehand would’ve gotten me more invested to the movie and more excited to watch,” Brisman said.