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The House of Sand and Fog
Watching
The House of Sand and Fog, I quickly became aware that
there is no way to write a review that covers both minds I
had towards the film.
So, here
is the review for the serious viewer who wants to know if
the movie is worth seeing.
The
House of Sand and Fog is a layered film that combines
superb acting by Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley with a
complex and intelligent script and compelling visual themes.
For the
typical, cynical Fanboyplanet.com reader in me, I write the
following review.
At one
point in this film, Ben Kingsley says "Things are not
what they seem." This proves to be the most important
sentence in the entire film, as it disproves what I saw as
the movie slowly came to full form. I saw it like this: A
seriously depressed Kathy (Jennifer Connelly) is screwed by
the county, who repossesses the house her father built, only
to sell it to a family of immigrants from some country we
bombed during the 1980s who are only using it to sell for
a big profit.
Things
are not what they seem, as the Behrani family, led by Colonel
Massoud Amir Behrani, had to flee when the Shah got booted.
They've been living above their means and have bought the
house to try and save themselves.
This is
a tough sell, as we spend so much time watching Connelly bemoan
the loss of the one piece of stability she had left and naturally
feel inclined to sympathize with the one who was screwed by
the government. This is the central problem: until the opening
of the third act, I was totally with Kathy. I completely wanted
her to get her house back. When her Deputy boyfriend pays
an illegal visit to threaten the Behrani family, I felt that
he was the good guy riding in to save the day. We're not supposed
to feel that, but it was inevitable.
The script
plays us a lot, keeps changing the worse off character, making
you want to change your allegiance, but Connelly's deep sadness
is over-powering in a good way. The strength of the script
is in the even-handed approach, but at the same time, it gives
the audience too much credit.
Connelly
is beautiful, and is shown somewhat naked a couple of times,
but she proves her chops in this one. She was so perfectly
cast here, as it combines the pathos of her role in Requiem
for a Dream, and the woman trying to clutch what she can
from A Beautiful Mind.
Ben Kingsley
hit the mark with every line, playing the military dad with
polish and sadness and confidence beyond almost every American
actor. Shohreh Aghdashloo is exceptional in the role of Mrs.
Behrani. She is frantic at times, but she is always trying
to hold it all together and be the wife that she had been
in Iran.
The biggest
acting problem is the interaction between Kingsley and Connelly.
Things get too intense, too tight on the screen. I liked them
apart, but together, they just over-whelmed the story that
had unfolded.
The cinematography
was exceptional. Lots of fog, with a bunch beautiful shots
of the Golden Gate and Half Moon Bay. The interior shots are,
oddly, flawed, and it helps the film. They are never the slick
shots that films like American Beauty have made so
typical, but rough, oddly positioned, off-model. It helps
to keep us feeling that they are fighting so hard over something
that is not the piece of heaven that the battle suggests that
it is. There was a ton of dripping: water, blood, tears, everything
drips and it becomes a sign of impending weakness in the character
that brings the dripping to our attention.
There
was a troubling moment, about 2/3 of the way through where
we see an obvious Super Nintendo poster and an old school
1988 Mac. Up until that moment, there was nothing to suggest
the time frame, and by dating the film so late in the going,
it drew me away from the action that had just started.
This was
a good film, but at the same time, there are these nagging
flaws that you can't help but drag out. The non-film geek
you go with will love it, will cry and think it's the best
movie they've seen in years. You'll be there, turning over
these little issues and wondering if this movie was all it
has been hyped as. It's close, but not quite there.
Rating:
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