House Of Sand And Fog

Synopsis: Recovered alcoholic Kathy Nicolo (Jennifer Connelly) is evicted from the house she has inherited from her father after a bureaucratic bungle over supposedly unpaid taxes. The house is then sold by the County at auction for a fraction of its worth to Massoud Amir Behrani (Ben Kingsley), a former colonel in Iran. Massoud, pursuing the American Dream, works at menial jobs while keeping up the image of affluence. The distraught Kathy is desperate to reclaim her house. With legal help, as well as the dangerously devoted assistance of Sheriff Lester Burdon (Ron Eldard), she sets about making life hell for the Behranis, and leading ultimately to devastating consequences.

Based on a best-selling novel by Andre Dubus III, this film affected me like few others in recent times. Director Perelman, in his feature directorial debut, shows a deep understanding of the immigrant experience, and gives us a film with startling performances and devastating moral dilemmas. Both Kingsley and Connelly give such depth and range of emotion to their characters that we can constantly empathise with each. Ben Kingsley especially shows us why he is one of this era’s foremost actors, one particular scene being possibly the most heart-wrenching screen performance I’ve seen for years. He also again displays his great talent at capturing the elusive essence of particular nationalities. Kingsley is strongly supported by leading Iranian actress Shohreh Aghdashloo as his wife Nadi and Jonathan Ahdout in his debut role as their teenage son Esmail.

The house itself has been deliberately chosen as a very plain dwelling – something that is not especially desirable in its own right, but has a deeper symbolic value for both parties who battle over it. The regularly repeated shots of the fog swirling around the little house reinforce a sense of elusiveness and aloneness – of how hard it is to find a place of belonging both for disaffected lonely people and for immigrants to a new land.

It is timely also that the film’s immigrants are Middle Eastern – one’s initial, perhaps harsh, impressions of the Behranis are softened by later incidents, reinforcing the intrinsic humanity and common desire of all peoples. However, whilst compassion looms large, things are not always what they initially seem and perceptions of the characters are constantly altering as the film progresses.

Although there are some minor plot flaws, ultimately House of Sand and Fog is a beautiful film, infused with a deep sadness and reinforcing the importance of humanity over possessions and tolerance over preconceptions.

 

 

Want more about this film?

    

Want something different?