House of Sand and Fog

The concept of the American dream emerged after World War II, when the US began to establish itself as a great world power. Since then, the dream of a better life, nurtured not only by American citizens, but also by foreigners who move there in order to find a more dignified survival, has been the subject of countless films, as in the drama House of Sand and Fog, Vadim Perelman's first film work.

In this feature film by Russian (USA based) Vadim Perelman, the concept of 'family' once again assumes an important place in the narrative, which revolves around Kathy (Connelly), an ex-addict who, after being abandoned by her husband, she is surprised by a notification that her house will be auctioned in order to pay taxes related to her company. The problem is that Kathy doesn't own any business - but before she can clear up the misunderstanding, the property is sold to an Iranian immigrant (Kingsley) for a value far below the market price. With nowhere to sleep, the girl gets help from Lester (Eldard), one of the police officers responsible for her eviction, who recommends a lawyer. Unfortunately, to resolve the impasse, the new owner of the house would have to resell it to City Hall for the same amount paid in the auction - something he refuses to do. From there, Kathy and Behrani (the immigrant) begin a real psychological battle that results in pain and suffering for all involved.

With a script bound by a structure in which it is not possible to measure or compare the dimension of suffering between Kathy and Behrani, director Perelman manages to create an excellent situation of injustice in which no one is to blame and everyone is a victim. And the mise-en-scène, aided by the natural landscape of Northern California, give the dense and suffocating atmosphere that surrounds the dreams of the two characters. Almost always surrounded by a strong fog, the much-disputed house is the very representation of this dream, which sometimes has the image dissipated by reality.

In fact, the beauty of this project (adapted from the book of the same name by Andre Dubus III) begins in its title: when identifying the house that becomes the center of the dispute as being from 'House of Sand and Fog', the film (and the book, of course,) summarizes, in a poetic way, the true meaning of property, which, for Kathy and Behrani, represents more than a simple material asset. For the girl, the house is both an icon of her past (since she inherited it from her father) and a symbol of her recovery. Keeping the property is a sign of maturity, of responsibility fulfilled - and losing it would be further proof of your inability to take care of yourself. For Behrani, the place represents, first and foremost, a good investment - and, consequently, the possibility of recovering part of the luxurious lifestyle he got used to in Iran, where he was an influential military man in the government. In addition, the immigrant counts on the money he will earn from the sale of the property to be able to pay for his youngest son's studies and, as if that were not enough, he still sees, in the property, a reflection of his old beach house. In other words: like sand and mist, which seem compact from a distance, but which slip through your fingers when touched, the house Kathy and Behrani wanted is an ethereal, elusive dream.

Another fascinating element of House of Sand and Fog concerns the personalities of its protagonists, who are not divided between 'Good' and 'Evil'. Behrani, for example, is an authoritarian man (inherited from his military past) and proud, but he is not cruel. And, despite recognizing that the simplest way to resolve the issue would be to return the property to the municipality, the subject considers (with some reason) that he should not be harmed by an administrative error - after all, he had worked hard to save the necessary money. To acquire the property and renovate it, and he cannot accept that his family's future is compromised by bureaucrats. Incidentally, Ben Kingsley, an actor with an already brilliant resume, delivers one of his best performances by perfectly illustrating his character's moral dilemma, humanizing him and transforming him into a complex and real figure. While portraying the Iranian's pride in resigning from the underemployment he had accepted to support his family, Kingsley moves the viewer in a scene in which the subject becomes totally vulnerable in the face of unexpected pain.

Meanwhile, the beautiful Jennifer Connelly takes on yet another suffering character and offers the ideal counterpoint to the usually confident Behrani, as Kathy always seems ready to fall apart. On the other hand, Officer Lester, played by Ron Eldard, is the only element of House of Sand and Fog who could be held responsible for all the suffering that unfolds, as he is a selfish guy who doesn't hesitate to use his badge to try to intimidate the immigrant family, revealing a despicable streak of xenophobia. And, since I mentioned the Behrani family, I must highlight the excellent performance of Shohreh Aghdashloo, who, as the wife of the ex-soldier, becomes the apparently most fragile person in history, since, as she does not understand English, it depends on the husband to understand what is happening - and unfortunately, Behrani is not very willing to explain the situation, leading her to fear even deportation (which would result in the death of her family, who are persecuted in Iran).

As much as the initial essence addressed by the plot seems to be somewhat empty or not very decisive, it is clear that the story manages to lean towards a brusque analysis of the choices we make and the modeling of our actions according to the individual principles of the characters. Once the climax starts to set in, it's impossible to deny how much depth the plot gains, revealing itself to be quite daring by touching pretentious social points, but without getting involved in a climate of cliché or falling into the fact that some films they intend to make social approaches end up forcing the development of facts in order to find out something in the end, as if they needed to force the public to have some kind of reaction or emotion. The investment in working minimally on the evolution of events is crucial so that everything that is articulated by the script gains credibility and gives a greater meaning to the film. The harmony captured by Perelman between the script and the direction is an interesting aspect to analyze, since we were able to perceive a certain affinity and awareness of what needed to be done to make a scene yield good moments. Using a lot of a dark and cold atmosphere, we can still see the director's pessimistic sensibility, as if he were warning the audience that the psychological and moral weights would be focused.

Perelman, by choosing a great cinematographer to accompany him, makes his tragic journey more surprising. Roger Deakins, responsible for the photography of the great Fargo, gives the proper treatment to the mist, making it a kind of character in the plot, as the presence of the natural phenomenon surrounds the house and surrounds certain spaces in a frightening way. Creating a melancholy and cold color scheme, Deakins helps Perelman build the mood of the film, which ends up being safely driven by the newcomer - especially when it comes to the performances. At times, Perelman reveals his inexperience in including less-than-subtle (or effective) shots, such as the one in which he rotates the camera around Connelly in order to create a superficially dramatic moment, but these small flaws do not compromise the final result.

House of Sand and Fog is a strong film, extremely touching. Its characters pursue their dreams in such a way that they put themselves in extreme situations. Furthermore, it is not a Manichean story. There are no good guys or bad guys, which brings the film even closer to real life. Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly deliver truly inspired performances. The desperation of its characters seems to have been incorporated by the actors to the last hair and it is also in the actors that the strength of the film is based. The work shows how difficult it can be to pursue a dream. And it's not just about the American dream, it's about any desire we have. The film shows the rawness of life in a way that it is impossible to feel compassion for its characters. The viewer ends up feeling sorry not only for one side of the story, but for both. They don't want to harm each other, quite the opposite. They're just chasing their dreams, as they say we should. Sad and morally complex, House of Sand and Fog is a film that fits perfectly into the Great Theme of the 2003 films: the family drama.

Movie It's a great movie, without a doubt, a strong and intelligent offering with some of the strongest and most heartfelt performances I've seen for a long time. Jennifer Connelly is stunning, and I don't just mean in looks, her acting is amazing and is picked up on the audio commentary again and again. One scene early on requires her to shed a single tear while talking quite normally on the phone, as if on queue it drops. You can hardly believe someone could give such a heart wrenchingly emotional and confused performance as this and manage to retain a normal life, watching her you believe that she is in a downward spiral of depression and self destruction. A totally believable and emotionally charged performance.

Ben Kingsley also gives a great performance, although not so outwardly recognisable in emotion, it's only really until you watch the audio commentary and listen to the praise given by the Director and author that you realise how subtle and exacting his performance is. His character is defined by strength, beliefs and pride, and Kingsley gives an excellent performance, Shakespearean in stature.

The film itself is emotionally draining, and you feel you're being taken on that roller-coaster drop along with Connelly's character, but don't for a second think that you shouldn't see it for those reasons, it's a journey that is superbly rewarding as a movie and an education in the miscommunication of people. Particularly people of different cultures.

As the movie progresses and the events step further and further down towards their tragic conclusion, the characters become more and more complex. Starting as simple, pigeon holed characters that you've seen before, they soon become more real and pull you into the movie, wrapping you up in them. They become utterly engaging and you totally disengage from life around you.

There's a strong supporting cast, although the performance from Jonathan Ahdout is not too convincing, those around them are, I think a particular mention is required to Shohreh Aghdashloo who provides an emotional balance for the coldness of Kingsley's character and an emotional mirror to the devastation of Connelly's character.

Two things are mentioned in the audio commentary that I didn't really pick up on until then, but retrospectively you realise these contribute greatly to making it a great movie. The first is the subtlety, there are many images and scenes without words that you don't truly appreciate until a second viewing, or a very careful first one. The second is the way that Kinglsey praises the Director's style of never telling the audience what did happen and is going to happen, events just occur. For instance the breaking of the marriage of Ron Eldard, where there is no explanation given, it's just happened. This has the effect of treating the audience with respect and realising that they have intelligence, and it also makes for an excellent way of keeping the pace of the movie.

Picture Presented: The picture is crisp and sharp, a superb use of lighting in the movie moving from the bright opening beginning of the story it darkens through time to the bleak and dismal closing scenes. The light is always warm and inviting, with any artificial light looking sterile, and the darker shots bleak and dismal. Some of the time lapse shots between scenes are beautiful.

Audio Presented: The audio is very good, although there is nothing to really take advantage of a surrounding speaker system, the sound is kept sparse and atmospheric, with an extremely subtle and limited soundtrack it gives everything to the movie and never distracts.

Extras Presented: What strikes you about this DVD are the beautiful animated menus, black and white shots from through the movie fill the background giving you the feeling of mystery and indeed sadness.

The Deleted Scenes are good, although alongside they have a dull and very annoying commentary. Rather than talking about the scene and giving some insights you are treated to noises of laughter, snorting and approval interspersed with over the top bouts of backslapping. Awful, before it's over you're dreading the onset of the audio commentary. The Behind the Scenes is good, but nothing new.

The Photo Gallery is very well done as it's not a gallery at all, it's a featurette that is filled with stills between interviews with people talking about actors, characters and key scenes. It's a very engaging way of creating a gallery. Another huge extra is the Shohreh Aghdashloo Audition, it's truly amazing to see this actress work through some very emotionally harrowing scenes one after the other right in front of your eyes, it gives you a superb grounding in what it really means to be an actor and auditioning. With this performance it's hardly surprising she gained the role.

Finally there is the Audio Commentary, and after the pathetic commentary on the deleted scenes I was really concerned. However the backslapping was slightly subdued for the full commentary, still very evident but much more bearable due to the amount of information that was given about the story, filming and the actors themselves. Combining Kingsley, Vadim Perelman and Andre Dubus III, you are treated to a really wide view from story conception through development, filming, acting and ultimately post production. I really enjoyed this insightful commentary, although bordering on the crawling at parts, it gave you a lot more about the movie and the story. It also provides an interesting look at the actors and their methods.

Overall The movie is superb and firmly fixes itself in the realms of classic tragedy. The acting from both leads is stunning, particularly Connelly, and the supporting cast provide strong backing. Powerful, emotional and at times quite harrowing, this is superb entertainment and a movie deserving far more recognition than it did, again particularly for Connelly.

First of all, anyone who says that s/he didn't "get the point of this movie" needs to go back to watching movies produced solely by Jerry Brukheimer because the point could not be more apparent to anyone of any intelligence. House of Sand and Fog is a commentary on the cultural gap between American-born citizens and immigrants from war-ridden countries such as Iran. Unfortunately that gap is shown for what it is: wider than ever.

The character of Kathy is portrayed brilliantly by Jennifer Connelly as an emotionally unstable young woman caught up in the turmoil of losing both her husband and her family's home within eight months of each other. Kathy ignorantly fails to realize that the house her dead father has left her brother and her is in jeopardy of being put up for auction due to unpaid taxes. Kathy comprehends, too late, that the thirty years it took her father to pay off their home has been in vain when it is sold to an Iranian family shortly after auction. Her character is pinned against Ben Kingsley's Colonel Behrani when Behrani buys Kathy's auctioned house in order to return his own family to a sense of stability. The audience is conflicted by its empathy for both character's need to satisfy his and her own pride in family and the preservation of his and her heritage.

The catalyst for the two characters' conflict with each other is drawn from the supporting character of Officer Lester (Ron Eldard), a representation of the ignorance and lack of empathy some Americans feel towards people whose lives have led them to seek better ones in the United States. While Behrani's main motive is to protect his family and give it a sense of security, Lester puts his own selfish pleasures before the wellbeing of his own family. Behrani and Lester are complete opposites, Behrani clearly the nobler. It is clear why Kingsley chose to do this role: Kingsley's portrayal of an Iranian refugee is both superb and honest, not to mention Oscar-worthy. The film shows that there are greater sacrifices in this world than those materialistic in nature. Ironically many Americans might find that point hard to absorb, probably the reason why they are so quick to write off House of Sand and Fog as "one of the worst movies" they have ever seen. House of Sand and Fog is a film, not a movie. Those who give this film a thumbs down need to get a dictionary and distinguish the difference between the two terms. Andre Dubus III's novel has been done justice. Thumbs up.

A visit from the bailiffs sets the scene, as they evict you from the place that's been a screen, from a world that's left you shattered, broken, worn out, weak and battered, now you're on the street and thoroughly demeaned. There are others who have also lost a place, who have lost all that they had, fallen from grace, they take their chance, but at what cost, as you pursue, oppose, accost, to recover sanctuary, your sacred place.

Some wonderful performances in a film that demonstrates how insecure the world can be, how subtly things can change for the worse and run out of control, and how the security and safety you've become accustomed to, can so very easily be removed.

This film is based on Andre Dubus III'S acclaimed novel "House of Sand and Fog". Dubus created a story of immense power about cultures and the gap between them, about human pain, about hope and ultimately about humanity and sometimes its tragic loss. Colonel Behrani (Sir Ben Kingsley) and his family, buy a house on the fictional area Pacific County, intending to ameliorate their lifestyle, as they have been banished from their home country, Iran. However, the previous owner of the house, a depressed young woman and recovering alcoholic, Kathy Lazaro (Jennifer Connelly), turns up and reclaims her property, which was taken from her because of a bureaucratic error. And when Kathy's boyfriend, Officer Lester Burdon (very effectively performed by Ron Eldard), a racist obsessed with the concept of justice decides to help her, all hell breaks loose. I cannot speak of the plot any further without spoiling it, so I will stop here. How can one tell a story and be more than a mere narrator? How can a book be adapted to film, without merely repeating what the book itself says? Not only does newcomer director Vadim Perelman answer this question, he gives us one of the best films of the past decade. Perelman doesn't waste a single detail. Everything is brought together to create an astonishing emotional impact. Like great directors such as Tarkovsky have done, Perelman approaches his every character and pierces through her/his soul. Every scene takes you deeper and deeper into the soul of the characters, without ever being slow moving or over descriptive. As for the performances, what can I say? Rarely if ever has a single performance moved me as much as Kingsley's. This gigantic actor delivers one of his best performances to date, he has immaculate control over every single aspect of his character, physically and emotionally. Connelly, one of the most talented actresses working today, is also breathtaking, creating a performance that is a quiet outburst of pain and regret. Shoreh Aghdashloo, portraying the most tragic character of the film (at least this is my view of her character), is heartbreaking. This is acting in its supreme form, I really don't think it gets better. She truly deserved an Oscar for this. Young Jonathan Ahdout is also excellent, we will definitely be seeing more of him in the future. However, I must warn you: If you are going to see this movie, prepare for an emotional breakdown. It is really one of the most devastating films of the past years and if you'd rather see a pleasant film, this isn't for you.