A 2005 Singaporean horror film, The Maid, is a story about a maid who came from Philippines. She was employed by the Teo family, a family with many secrets. The film was directed by Kelvin Tong and starring Alessandra de Rossi.
Rosa, a filipino lady, went to Singapore to work as a domestic helper for the Teo family. She arrives on the Hungry Ghost Month, when according to the Chines folklore, the gates of hell opens so the dead can go to earth. Rosa was not familiar with the rituals that the people follows, sweeps the ashes on the floor that are better off alone and she starts seeing ghost, hearing strange sounds and the doors keep opening without anyone opening it. Mr. Teo and Mrs. Teo introduced their mentally disabled child, Ah Soon. Ah Soon develops affection to Rosa and Rosa plays along with his childish behaviour. As days goes by, she discovers that there was a maid 2 years ago before her named Esther. Esther apparently also has good relationship with Ah Soon. That is when Rosa thinks that there is something wrong going on. When Rosa is left alone in the house, she roams around the house and discovered a drum where the burnt body of Esther was placed. Esther’s spirit shows her a vision and that is when Rosa found out the reason why Esther died. Esther was raped by Ah Soon and when she was going to call the police Mr. Teo beat her to the ground and burned her. When Rosa knew it, she planned to escape from the Teo family but unfortunately she was found by Mrs. Teo. They planned to get their son marry Rosa. Rosa didn’t agree and Esther’s spirit helped Rosa to escape. Rosa escaped and she went back to the Philippines with the ashes of Esther.
At first I thought that the movie is boring because the first few minutes of the movie did not catch my attention, but as I watch the movie, it was a captivating movie. I got curious when strange events start happening to Rosa. I always get frightened when the ghosts suddenly appear.
The maid is like a combination of Japanese and Singapore feel which gives the movie a different feel and experience, this makes the movie stand out from other horror movies. The cinematography of the movie was beautiful be it in limited lighting or in broad light. The editing of the movie was good; you will really get scared when some ghosts appear.
The Maid was worth watching. It has a super tense story and it will give us some knowledge about the culture in Singapore; like the Hungry ghost month or when watching an opera the front seat is only for the dead and other more. I recommend this movie for those people who like watching horror movies.
May An Abanes 