The Miniaturist
A young woman moves to 17th century Amsterdam and hires a mysterious local miniaturist to furnish the dollhouse she received from her merchant husband as a present, but the lifelike miniatures somehow start eerily foreshadowing her fate.
James Saenz reviewed
November 20, 2025•
“by telling me lies, he made me see the truth— the way sometimes a painting is more beautiful than the thing itself. it was a painting of love, but i couldn’t tell the difference… nor did i care to.”
what started out as a mysterious gothic horror soon gives way to a fairly competent period drama, but it ends too abruptly to deliver the latter with the finesse it deserves; the sobering realization that both the gothic horror and mystery take a backseat to the drama and never reach a satisfying conclusion is also disappointing.
the first episode is easily the stronger one for how it sets up the narrative, and as nella further embroils herself in the unfurling web of secrets and lies it feels like it has so much potential and some really intriguing themes to explore; there’s a lot of merit in the idea of discovering a found family and having them tragically ripped from you one at a time. this makes the rushed wrapping up of the storylines feel unearned and ultimately underdeveloped. i found myself wishing i had more time with these characters to really connect with them, to see an interesting take on european history through this lens.
the costuming is gorgeous and the cinematography is quite impressive for a tv miniseries, with some lovely shot compositions and unexpectedly effective split diopter shots. i could do without some of the awkward editing choices, but this is something i could see myself returning to and enjoying far more with the correct expectations. it also makes me want to read the novel, so here’s to that adventure.