Life as a House is a 2001 American drama film produced and directed by Irwin Winkler. The screenplay by Mark Andrus focuses on a man who is anxious to repair his relationship with his ex-wife and teenaged son after he is diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Plot
George Monroe, a fabricator of architectural models, is fired from the job he has held for twenty years when he refuses to fall into step with his co-workers and use the computer technology available to them. As he exits the building, he collapses on the pavement and is rushed to the hospital, where he is diagnosed with cancer so advanced the doctor feels any treatment would be futile.
Liberated from a job he hated and funded by his severance package, George decides the time has come to demolish the ramshackle home left to him by his father and replace it with a house more in keeping with the ambiance of his upscale neighborhood. He decides to enlist the aid of his son, angst-ridden and self-loathing Sam, a rebellious, pill-popping, glue-sniffing teenager with blue hair, heavy makeup, and a number of piercings in his ears and under his mouth. The young man is a slacker who has alienated his stepfather Peter and caused untold grief for his mother Robin, who increasingly finds herself unable to cope with the boy's moods. Very much against his will, Sam must spend the summer with George, who has opted not to reveal his condition, and help him with what will be the final project of his life.
As time passes, George slowly reconnects with Sam, who gradually sheds his anti-establishment facade as he and his father become closer. Robin decides to assist as well, and she begins to find herself rediscovering the man she once loved. Also joining in the construction are Alyssa, Sam's classmate who lives in the house next door with her mother Colleen; local policeman Kurt Walker, George's childhood friend; Sam's young half-brothers Adam and Ryan; various neighbors; and eventually Peter, even after separating from Robin when it becomes apparent she has renewed feelings for her ex-husband. Complications arise when cantankerous neighbor David Dokos tries to halt construction because the building's height exceeds the allowable limit by six inches.
George confides in Sam about his difficult relationship with his own father, an abusive man who squandered the family's fortune and killed his wife and seriously injured a young girl in a collision he caused while driving drunk. Upon completion of the house following his father's death, Sam gives it to the woman using a wheelchair as a result of his grandfather's careless actions, certain his father would have approved of his decision to do so.
Production
In Character Building: Inside Life as a House, a bonus feature on the DVD release of the film, director Irwin Winkler confesses he never realized the rekindling love between George and Robin was a key aspect of the script until he saw the emotion displayed by Kevin Kline and Kristin Scott Thomas in their scenes together. Winkler encouraged his cast to improvise moments leading into and following their scripted dialogue, many of which were included in the final film.
In From the Ground Up, another DVD bonus feature, production designer Dennis Washington discusses how he was required to construct an entire street of houses leading to Sam's house, which was perched on a cliff overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Palos Verdes, California. The new house was built on another site, then dismantled and transported to the film set as each section was needed. Because the film tracked the progress of the dismantling of the old house and the construction of the new one, it had to be shot in sequence. When the film was completed, the house was dismantled, moved, reconstructed, and enlarged to become a library for the Kenter Canyon Elementary School in Brentwood.
The soundtrack includes "What You Wish For" and "Rainy Day" by Guster, "That's the Way" by Gob, "Live a Lie" and "Somewhere" by Default, "Sweet Dreams" by Marilyn Manson, "Water" by ohGr, "Rearranged" by Limp Bizkit, "Both Sides Now" by Joni Mitchell, "Gramercy Park" by Deadsy, and "How to Disappear Completely" by Radiohead.
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was shown at the Boston Film Festival before going into limited release in the US on October 26, 2001.
Cast
Box office
The film opened in twenty-nine theaters in the US and grossed $294,056 on its opening weekend. It eventually earned $15,667,270 in the US and $8,236,521 in foreign markets for a total worldwide box office of $23,903,791. [1]
Awards and nominations
Hayden Christensen was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture and the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role and won the National Board of Review Award for Breakthrough Performance by an Actor. Kevin Kline was nominated for the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role. The film won the Audience Award for Favorite Feature at Aspen Filmfest.
DVD release
Warner Home Video released the film on DVD on March 26, 2002. It is in anamorphic widescreen format with an audio track and subtitles in English. Bonus features include commentary by director/producer Irwin Winkler, producer Rob Cowan, and screenwriter Mark Andrus; Character Building: Inside Life as a House and From the Ground Up, documentaries about the making of the film; four deleted and/or alternate scenes (one with William Russ, originally cast as Kurt Walker but replaced when he was injured in a motorcycle accident after filming began) with optional commentary; a theatrical press kit; and the original trailer.
References
External links
