Netflix’s current number one series is The Woman in the House Across the Street From the Girl in the Window, a sly send-up of the ‘white woman in peril’ psychological thriller genre that launched a thousand Lifetime movies. Inspired by films like The Girl on the Train and The Woman in the Window, The Woman stars Kristen Bell as Anna, a wine-guzzling ombrophobic (she’s scared of rain) who thinks she witnesses a murder in the house across the street.
Anna is grieving her recent divorce and the loss of her daughter, living as a shut-in until she meets her new neighbors, handsome widower Neil (Tom Riley) and his precocious young daughter Emma (Samsara Yett). Anna is quickly taken with this new family and a budding flirtation with Neil, but is surprised to discover that he is already in a relationship with flight attendant girlfriend Lisa (Shelley Hennig). One rainy night, Anna witness Lisa’s murder through the window.
But is Anna’s mind playing tricks on her? Did she hallucinate the murder? Worse, is Anna the killer herself? She sets out to solve the mystery, armed with a bucket of wine, some pills, and several chicken casseroles.
As you can tell from the overlong title, TWITHATSFTGITW (let’s just call it The Woman) is a parody. But if you’re looking for a gag-a-minute style comedy in the vein of Airplane! or Scary Movie, you should temper your expectations. The jokes here are subtle, from Buell the handyman (Cameron Britton) spending years fixing the same mailbox to the ever-changing quote on Anna’s daughter’s tombstone (“There’s no I in Heaven” is my favorite). And then there are the casseroles, which Anna drops dramatically all over town.
Series creators Rachel Ramras, Hugh Davidson and Larry Dorf (Mike Tyson Mysteries, Nobodies) clearly know their genre, from the music cues to the costuming. And Bell is more than game, delivering just the right amount of seriousness within the absurdity. Many viewers have drawn comparisons to Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig’s Lifetime movie spoof A Deadly Adoption, which sees the two SNL veterans playing it straight.
Is The Woman worth watching? Yes, it is way too long, and probably should have been an 80 minute movie. And yes, the jokes are few and far between. But a curious thing happens as the series progresses. The recurring jokes get funnier, the tangents get goofier, and the final episode features a knock-down drag out fight that is hysterically funny. I found myself getting sucked in with every dumb cliffhanger, every plot twist, and every cliché referenced.
This is decidedly NOT a series for everyone. But I feel like there are elements here of alt-comedy cult classics like Wet Hot American Summer. With strong supporting turns from Michael Ealy and Mary Holland, there is enough silliness in the series to merit a watch … if only for the casseroles of it all.
Viewers seemed not to know what to make of the series, and took to social media to share their thoughts:
Have you watched The Woman? What did you think? The entire series is currently streaming on Netflix.
(image: Colleen E. Hayes/Netflix)
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