Synopsis
Foundering a little after the death of his elderly (and domineering) mother, Manley Carstairs, a self-styled literary artist, engages a housekeeper, Annie Dankworth, to look after his large Victorian house (and himself).
When Annie first arrives, wearing sneakers and carrying her belongings in a supermarket trolley, Manley is taken aback, but as she seems so eager to please, he decides to employ her. The relationship between the pair progresses rapidly from initial reserve to active hatred. Annie is an eccentric oddball. She insults her employer, denigrates his writing, admits she forged her references, accuses him of lusting after her and in general, makes his life hell.
What follows is a series of fast-paced scenes, some in the present, some in the past culminating in an unexpected conclusion