All is going okay until she has a dispute with the county over the house her father left her and her brother. She spends most of her free time watching movies, one after the other. She has been flying straight for a while. She is an addict who has been through a drug rehabilitation program. Just an instant smear of me right out of all this rising and falling and nothing changing that feels like living.” Writers: Vadim Perelman and Shawn Lawrence Otto (from a novel by Andre Dubus III)Ĭast: Kathy: Jennifer Connelly Behrani: Ben Kingsley Lester: Ron Eldard Connie Walsh: Frances Fisher Carol Burdon: Kim Dickens.“And that's what I wanted: obliteration. Roger Thomas is pastor of First Baptist Church in Ablemarle, N.C. If one liked “Changing Lanes,” one should definitely see the much more tragic “House of Sand and Fog.” Together, when both are available for home viewing, these two fine films will make a fantastic double feature on the inability to empathize-and the sometimes hazardous results of this inability. If one has never seen “Changing Lanes,” but enjoys “House of Sand and Fog,” one should rent the former. Instead, the audience sees true consequences to unrighteous choices. Had the film ended the way she wished, the implication would be that all the immoral choices and tragedy that followed were meaningless. I could not have disagreed more with her assessment. There are no easy answers at the end of “House of Sand and Fog.” As I exited the theater, I overheard one viewer comment to another that the film should have ended differently. There is a glimmer of hope for these characters at that moment, but there is also the unease that this hope may be fleeting. As Kathy and Behrani each choose to escalate the situation, it becomes harder for goodness to prevail.Īt one moment in the film, one of the two main characters makes a choice based on personal religious faith. Sin, by its nature, expands and complicates life. The other lesson concerns the escalation of unrighteous choices. In this fast-paced world where material success and possessions mean almost everything, it is easy to let one’s selfish desires mute the needs of another. First, the film is a commentary on contemporary American society where people have lost the ability to listen and care. ![]() “House of Sand and Fog,” as with “Changing Lanes” before it, has at least two prominent lessons. All three of these performances elevate the engrossing screenplay based on the novel by Andre Dubus III. Shohreh Aghdashloo has also created a great deal of buzz about her performance as Behrani’s wife who struggles with her loyalty to family as the conflict intensifies. Connelly and Kingsley both deliver Oscar-caliber performances and may soon receive nominations. “House of Sand and Fog” boasts three of the finest performances of this past year. These are normal people making bad choices and refusing to consider that the good and righteous choice lies beyond their wishes. ![]() ![]() These are not evil people doing evil things. Both are not willing to compromise or even speak rationally to one another. Academy Award winner Ben Kingsley plays a former Iranian general, Behrani, who purchases Kathy’s house in the hopes of a new life for his family.īoth need the house in many ways for the same moral reason: family. Academy Award winner Jennifer Connelly plays Kathy, a lonely woman who loses her parents’ home because of a government mistake concerning the property taxes. “House of Sand and Fog” is also a movie about two flawed and struggling individuals who are thrust into a battle of wills without ever sharing a rational conversation. Almost two years ago a film was released entitled “Changing Lanes.” It told the story of two imperfect men who end up entwining one another in a series of vengeful reactions-because of a fender-bender.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |