House of Sand and Fog

Rating:
Summary: Waterworks
Review: Gawd almighty, who dreams this stuff up? Not even if you plonked me in front of a keyboard with twenty grand and a brief to create waterworks could I come up with such an awful story. I cried in the theatre. In fact, I was last out of the theatre. I cried on the bus home, which got some stares but no guardian angel. I cried all the way to the bathroom cabinet where I took an overdose of pills. I died and buried myself. I exhumed myself to cry some more.

During the film, a character looks at a Bolshevik propaganda poster. Is the film saying all property is theft? Is that the significance of the last line uttered? Is this a Commie movie? I'll figure it out in the bath. I won't even need to turn the taps on.

Rating:
Summary: home wreckers
Review: Good performances from Connelly and Kingsley and a potentially interesting premise. But sadly, the whole thing caves in under the weight of ridiculously overwrought plot turns, with far-fetched tragedy piled upon tragedy simply because the heroine didn't bother to read her mail. Didn't read the book (and now have no desire to) but it had to have been better than this arty fiasco.

Rating:
Summary: Best novel adaptation I've ever seen
Review: I had given up hope that Hollywood could treat good books well (with a few exceptions such as Clockwork Orange and the World Accorping to Garp). In recent years, Seabiscuit particularly confused me (why change characters' ages or introduce new ones to an already compelling story?). I was floored by the novel House of Sand and Fog and thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Every performance is extraordinary -- all three leads, as well as Behrani's wife. Hats off to Andre Dubus for holding off to work with a director who would be faithful to his novel and true to the ending. I advise anyone to read the amazing book first and then see the movie. You'll thoroughly enjoy both.

Rating:
Summary: Disintegration.
Review: 4.5 stars. I told a collegue of mine that I saw this film in the theater and he asked me if it was any good. All I could do was nod my head. He laughed, "It's so good you can't put it into words?" I nodded again. The acting in this film is so phenomenal it really is difficult to properly convey how superb the performances are. Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly are as good as actors get. Ben Kingsley can play any character. From Gandhi to a socio-pathic psychotic in "Sexy Beast" to this role, which is an Iranian officer seeking a better life in America. His performance is amazing! As for Jennifer Connelly, she is on a roll. With her Oscar-winning performance in "A Beautiful Mind" and another fine turn in "Waking the Dead" she has reached the upper echelon of the greatest actors working today. She was not nominated for the Oscar for her work here, which was a genuine surprise, but probably should have been. The actress who plays Ben Kingsley's wife in this film, whose name escapes me at the moment, was nominated for the Oscar. That was an excellent surprise. I was sure she would be over-looked come Oscar-time, but once in a while the Academy gets it right. She is the only somewhat likable character in the movie. And that's where my only criticism lies, not that it's a negative criticism, per se. But none of these characters are particularly likable. They are realistic as hell, with glaring character flaws and subject to making major mistakes just like everyone else. As for the plot itself, it is basically about Jennifer Connelly's character and the gradual disintegration of her life due to circumstances beyond her control; and how everyone she comes into contact with is affected by her and eventually their lives begin to disintegrate as well. This is a tragic character study, with fantastic acting and a realistic script. If you love great acting, this film is a must for your collection. Thank you.

Rating:
Summary: Good.
Review: From now on I'm gonna stick to writing one word reviews. It doesn't matter how in depth I go, people are still going to put that this review wasn't helpful just because they're idiots and they didn't like the movie and/or however I chose to write about it.
Why write about it?
Why write what someone else has already said? You know the plot synopsis. I can't "improve" anything. No one's up here talking about the philosophical points of this movie: something I would love to do but since most of you hate me already for being here it seems...
This is a good movie. My wife thought that the Cop/boyfriend was the only flat character. I personally don't see it this way, because I like the movie. God I love seeing that Super Nintendo poster in the kids bedroom! It gives me as much a thrill as seeing the Accordion King poster in Fargo.
I have personal reasons for liking this movie.
I can think of lots of times in my life Ive avoided these kind of situations with crazy people. Selling my house in Indiana and trying to get drainage and no one allowing you on their property and then sue-ing you afterwards because when they let you finally in after years and a sizable payment for resodding...they want rose bushes.
It's even worse out here in California. Nobody has houses, everybody has to rent. But we have to rent from slumlords, and so we have a lot of anger because we're treated like dirt.
This movie reminds us WHY its good to be good to people.
It's a movie with a point and a script. No wonder it didn't win (hardly) anything.
I'll remember how it goes. You will too.

Rating:
Summary: Intesne,Superbly Acted,but ultimately falls short
Review: House of Sand And Fog undoubtedly makes a huge impact.I walked away from the film feeling so emotionally drained, I could've sworn I'd just survived my own Shakespearean tragedy.And, no question the acting is some of the most(if not the most) explosive,and intense ensemble acting you'll see all year.Jennifer Connelly is a superb dramatic actress who sketches in depth and dimension through her character from the very first line she utters.She is subtle, and never passes over hysterics for true emotion.Ben Kingsley is AMAZING.His performance is brave,and heartbraking,and ultimately explosive.Shoreh Agdashloo (did I spell that right?) also gives a quitely moving performance as Kingsley's wife.And the climax of the film completely tore me into shreds, and left me feeling emotionally drained(which means the movie worked)

That's about all the praise I can give to House, and in truth it does deserve a lot of praise, especially for a first time director.There are a couple problems with the film however.First of all,I felt Ron Eldard's character was never well developed enough.Maybe that had something to do with the fact that Eldard was overwhlemed by the powerhouse performances around him, but I just felt like his character, and his performance never really hit home.The biggest problem was the ending.The climax really hit home,(I wept like a baby),but then the film just wouldn't end.It kept stopping at a bunch of dramatic moments that all seemed like they were potential endings; by the time the film was over I was actually glad.It kind of smothered the impact of the climax for me.Another problem was the overused James Horner score.Not only was the score itself not terribly melodic or emotional, it was swept into the last 20 minutes (which were supposed to be the most emotional) at full volume with no relief, which really made my emotions go down.

All in all, despite its flaws, I think House Of Sand And Fog is a safe recommendation for film buffs.I warn you its very sad and depressing,but its definately not a film that you'll walk away from feeling nothing.

Rating:
Summary: Artistic triumph for director Vadim Perelman
Review: You can read elsewhere on this page about the great acting jobs turned in by Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly. Both are outstanding here. I had just seen Kingsley in 'Sexy Beast' so the constrast was stunning. And Connelly is better here - forced to plumb greater depths - than she was in her Oscar-winning turn in "A Beautiful Mind." (Why no Oscar nomination here if Kingsley and Shohreh Aghdashloo got them? Seems an obvious oversight.)

The real revelations here are co-star Aghdashloo and director Vadim Perelman. Aghdashloo was justly rewarded with an Independent Spirit award and that Oscar nod. Great to see the Academy go a little wider afield in their recognition.

With Aghdashloo and Whale Rider's Keisha Castle-Hughes, it's obvious there's a sea change coming. Aghdashloo deserves that nomination. She's the stitching that pulls together each of the film's different threads. Plus, holding your own in scene after scene with Sir Ben Kingsley is quite a feat.

Perelman's personal story is inspiring. What a trip for this Ukrainian imigrant who was known up until this point as a director of commercials. He formed a bond with writer Andre Dubus III because he saw that "House" was a bleak, uncompromising story - he made a promise to Dubus not to mess with that tone...no contrived, uplifting ending here. Far from it. This is one of the more savage, stunning ends to a film you'll ever see.

Perelman's next project is 'The Talisman' (based on a Stephen King story), with Executive Producer Steven Spielberg (due out in 2005). It's obvious that Perelman's debut effort turned some heads in Hollywood.

Rating:
Summary: Failed potential
Review: This should be a film primarily about real-estate legality issues and only secondarily of emotional drama and conflicting loss. With this opinion, it is the first half of the film which embodies its strengths. These scenes describe the unjust eviction of one woman from her father's waterfront house and the purchase of this property by an Iranian immigrant family, as well as the vigilante attempts of a policeman to rectify the situation. Sadly, this fascinating legal drama is burdened down by excessive involvement in personal lives treated - perhaps unintentionally - in a unsympathetic manner, leaving a majority of viewers disinterested with the entire affair. Each character has his or her own tragic life: Jennifer Connelly plays a clinically depressed former alcoholic; Ron Eldard is suffering through a marital separation; and Ben Kingsley, Shohreh Aghdashloo, and Jonathan Ahdout have found themselves, since their forced immigration, in the lowest echelons of American society. Mixed together, these characters are lost as to common goals and peaceful resolution. As tensions rise within each individual, the amusing slowly turns to catastrophic in a long series of escalatingly rash actions. This movie shows what desperation can do to an otherwise mundane situation, but Perelman has taught us this lesson in an absolutely unintriguing way. When the blood begins to fall, there is no shock or concern surrounding it. The film ends in cliche.

Rating:
Summary: Great Acting Performances - Very sad movie
Review: It surprised me that Jennifer Connelly did not get nominated for an Oscar for this. She is very convincing as the emotionally unstable women who looses her house for non-payment of taxes.
Ben Kingsley gave a good performance as well, as the stubborn immigrant who buys the house. So if you see this film, see it for the acting performances.
I have not read the book. But this movie is very sad. There is no hope for happiness anywhere in the film. Every character in this movie has it bad. Very dramatic.

Rating:
Summary: IT'S A HAUNTING HOUSE ......
Review: This is a very powerful and haunting movie. I saw it when it was first released and still can't get it out of my head. It certainly deserved more than 3 oscar nods that it got (and lost). The story, the cinematography, the music are all great, but it's the performances that take this complex and excellent movie to a higher level. Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley and the rest of the cast are all wonderful but hands down it's The Iranian actress Shohreh Aghdashloo who gives the best performance in the movie. With her soulful eyes and understated performance, she conveys such great passion, anger, love and resignation that truly breaks your heart.
Highly recommended for those who are tired of mindless Hollywood movies and are looking for substance.