You’ve heard the rumblings about the changes coming to Shops at Park Lane, but now you can experience it for yourself: The Park, an outdoor gathering space in the heart of the shopping center, is now open.
The 10,000-square-foot park is a serene counterpart to the hustle and bustle of the retail side. It boasts multiple water features, an interactive fountain, seating areas, power outlets and Wi-Fi. So grab a latte at the new showpiece Starbucks, then park it outside and listen the water gurgling, get caught up on Game of Thrones from your iPad or, sigh, get a little work done on your laptop.
In addition to Starbucks, a recently opened Zoës Kitchen has a patio overlooking the green space. Another restaurant, Crisp Salad Co., opens in May; this is the second branch for a new chain-in-the-making which debuted on Greenville Avenue in December 2013.
The park also will host a variety of activities. Fitness Fridays start in May, when Studio6 puts on yoga classes at noon; just BYO mat and water. These are free and open to the public.
In June, it's Movies in the Park, a Friday-night series when you can watch movies on the big screen. The schedule is as follows:
June 5: Pitch Perfect
June 12: Jurassic Park
June 19: Zoolander
June 26: Despicable Me 2
Movies start at 8:30 pm or dusk. Blankets and beach chairs are welcome, but no coolers or alcohol are permitted. These screenings are also free.
Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney in The Housemaid.
Both Amanda Seyfried (the upcoming The Testament of Ann Lee) and Sydney Sweeney (Christy) are starring in movies with Oscar ambitions this year. By sheer coincidence, the two actors are also co-starring in The Housemaid, a thriller coming out within weeks of their more ambitious works, one that is likely to be seen by many more people than those prestige plays.
Sweeney is given top billing as Millie, a down-on-her-luck ex-convict looking to land any type of job so as not to break her parole. She finds a too-good-to-be-true lifeboat with Nina (Seyfried), who hires her to be a housemaid for her large house on Long Island, where she lives with her husband, Andrew (Brandon Sklenar), and daughter, Cecilia (Indiana Elle).
After a warm interview, Nina almost immediately becomes highly erratic, whipping back-and-forth between happy-go-lucky and rageful. It seems clear that Nina is suffering from mental health issues, as she’ll often accuse Millie of misplacing or stealing items that she didn’t take. Andrew, apparently used to Nina’s tirades, tries to protect Millie from the worst, something that grows increasingly difficult as Nina ups the ante.
Directed by Paul Feig (A Simple Favor) and adapted by Rebecca Sonnenshine from the bestselling book by Freida McFadden, the film is likely the trashiest mainstream movie to come out in 2025. The first half of the movie relies not on story but on moments as Nina embodies the word “hysterical” to an unbelievable extent. The resigned acceptance of the abuse by Millie, as well as the saintly patience of Andrew, make almost every scene laughable, as nobody seems to be acting anywhere close to how a person would normally react to such extreme situations.
The scenes and the performance of Seyfried are so over-the-top, in fact, that it’s clear that the filmmakers are in on the joke. It’s next to impossible not to have a little bit of fun while watching the actors react to outrageous incidents as if nothing is out of the ordinary. The worse Nina acts, the more Millie and Andrew retreat into their chosen roles, and the funnier the film becomes.
Fans of the book will know that the story changes course, eventually turning into a more stereotypical thriller that also has some relatively gnarly visuals to offer. But the trashiness continues, with Sweeney’s, um, assets repeatedly on display in both clothed and unclothed ways. The sex appeal of the R-rated movie makes it an outlier, as recent studio films have shied away from asking their big stars to disrobe completely.
Both Seyfried and Sweeney are far from their Oscar hopeful roles here. Seyfried is given free rein to act as brazenly as she pleases, and she takes full advantage of that ability. Sweeney seems to have been told to be much more reserved, and unfortunately that results in too many wooden line readings. Sklenar continues his breakout streak (It Ends with Us, Drop) with a role that allows him to show more range than either Seyfried or Sweeney.
The Housemaid is an unusual type of movie to be released at a time of year when most films are either those aiming for awards or more family-friendly fare. Despite its many flaws, it’s still an enjoyable watch that features a variety of crazy scenarios not typically seen in movies nowadays.
