One of the all-time greats
You may argue whether legendary Korean director Kim Ki-young intended The Housemaid to be so blackly comic, or whether time has treated this turgid melodrama exceptionally well. But from start to finish, this film is enormously entertaining.
A Korean household takes in a new housemaid. Almost as quickly, she sets her eyes on the man of the house, a music teacher, and proceeds to seduce him -- and slowly take over the household. Each of her moves is presented with with such perverse detail that each foreshadowing can't help but invoke gleeful giggles. Just as you think things couldn't get much worse -- they do, until a mind-boggling denouement not to be revealed.
It's also a chance to see Sung-kee Ahn (Musa, Spring in My Hometown, Nowhere to Hide, etc.) as a child in his best early role.
The Housemaid is one of those rare treasures you dream will be someday transferred onto DVD, and I'm certain that many dedicated film-goers would agree. My theater audience was flabbergasted. A film like this simply can't be found.