At about the half-way mark of Chilean writer-director Sebastian Silva’s The Maid, the tone shifts abruptly from a light-hearted tale of the daily rituals of a prosperous family and their maid to something much darker and even more intriguing.
Frumpy, over-worked and sickly Raquel (Saavedra) shows her displeasure when the family decides she needs help and hires an extra maid: She locks young Peruvian Mercedes (Mercedes Villanueva) out of the house and is so cruel to her, the poor lass quits. Raquel dishes out more of the same when the family hires the much older, feisty Sonia (Anita Reeves), leading to a violent confrontation.
It’s only when the latest addition to the household staff, the breezy, self-confident Lucy (Mariana Loyola) shows her some kindness that icy Raquel begins to melt, regain her health and equilibrium.
Until then, Raquel had been so sullen, rude and ill-tempered it’s a wonder the family had retained her for more than 20 years. Still, it’s obvious the matriach Pilar (Claudia Celedón) can scarcely bring herself to chastise Raquel, let alone fire her. She’s like a second mother to their teenage son Lucas (Agustin Silva) but has a troubled relationship with headstrong daughter Camila (Andrea Garcia-Huidobro).
Aged 41, Raquel appears to have no life beyond the family, except for a mother to whom she talks occasionally on the phone, and she has only one, clumsy romantic encounter with Lucy’s uncle.
There’s plenty of humour arising from her battles with Camila; her discovering tell-tale signs of pubescent behavior on Lucas’ sheets and pyjamas; scrubbing the bath with disinfectant each time it’s used by one of her unwanted helpers; her rough treatment of the family’s cat; and similar everyday occurrences.
Saavedra is spell-binding as an outwardly unsympathetic character whose brusque facade masks loneliness, frustration, and jealousy. Loyala is wonderful as Lucy, a dynamo who brings friendship and fun to Raquel’s dour existence—for a while.
Introducing his movie on stage at the State theatre during the Sydney Film Festival, Silva described it as an 'intimate portrait" of his own experience. This is a polished work of a very assured director, given that it’s only his second feature following 2007’s Life Kills Me.
While most of the film unfolds within the four walls of the family’s palatial house, garden and swimming pool, it never feels claustrophobic. Sergio Armstrong’s inventive handheld camerawork shows the close quarters in which the characters find themselves, adding an air of almost documentary-like realism to this engaging Upstairs/Downstairs tale.
At the 2009 Sundance festival, The Maid won the World Cinema grand jury prize and Saavedra’s performance was honoured with a special jury prize.
