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The House of Sand
Directed by: Andrucha Waddington
Starring: Fernanda Torres
Genre:
Foreign
Run Time: 115
min.
Release Date:
August 2006
On The Web:
Official
Site
Teaser:
Movie Trailer
Reviewed by
Byron Merritt |
"Epic" is often something
we attribute to lengthy films or ones that have a cast of nearly a
hundred or more. LAWRENCE OF ARABIA (1962) quickly comes to mind.
It had an all-star cast and a run time of over 220 minutes. DOCTOR
ZHIVAGO (1965) is another, clocking in at just over 190 minutes.
Then there’s the more modern “epics” such as GLADIATOR (2000)
that comes in at 171 minutes.
But run times and large casts are only a portion of what makes an epic
an epic. THE HOUSE OF SAND runs well under two hours (115
minutes) -- and has only a handful of actors -- but spans multiple
generations, covering over 60 years. And although The House of Sand
teeters on the verge epic-ness, it misses the mark ...but only by a
hair.
Visually breathtaking, The House of Sand focuses on the lives of
three generations of women. The first generation is forced into a little
known desert area of Brazil where a man named Vasco (Ruy Guerra) leads a
ragtag group of settlers on a quest for land to call their own. With him
comes his wife Aurea (Fernanda Torres), a young woman of an arranged
marriage. Also with him is Aurea’s mother, Maria (Fernanda Montenegro).
The group of settlers quickly learn the inhospitable nature of the area
and all of them flee, except for Vasco, Aurea, and Maria. But Vasco soon
dies in an accident, leaving the mother/daughter team to fend for
themselves. Luckily, there’s a group of former slaves eking out an
existence nearby. Massu (Seu Jorge) is one of these tough ex-slaves, and
he takes a liking to Aurea (as do several other men who live or happen
upon this sandy area).
As time passes, Maria falls in love with the dunes and the simplicity of
the area. But Aurea begs to leave. She wants for the excitement of a
city with people her own age. Several options for freeing herself from
the boredom of the sand appear and just as quickly evaporate, stranding
her year after year in the desolation. One time, however, a young
officer in the Brazilian Army visits the area with scientists who are
marking an eclipse of the sun, and a quick one-night-stand results in a
pregnancy. The officer leaves and Aurea is once again stuck in this
place. Her daughter (Maria) grows and looks exactly like Aurea. And as
Aurea ages, she has a striking resemblance to her mother, Maria. Roles
get reversed after Aurea’s mother’s death in a sand slide. Aurea must
now be the responsible mother to her daughter Maria. But Maria’s life in
this place is adding up to zero. Sound familiar?
The circular pattern of family has been done before, but never on par
with this. The sweeping vistas, quiet yet constantly shifting sands, and
the pressing of dunes on everything (including the women’s
relationships) make this film a very good story. But not a great one.
The short run time forces two quick decade leaps that are, to say the
least, jarring and confusing. Also, the excellent cinematography
lingered just a bit too long on occasion whenever sweeping scenery
presented itself (“Yeah, that’s beautiful ...still beautiful ...yep,
still great ...is it still on the screen?”)
This is one of director Andrucha Waddington’s first feature length films
and one can’t help but be impressed by his able hands on the helm. It is
a magnificent piece of cinema that needed just a few touch-ups in order
to be “Epic.”
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Image from The House of
Sand
DVD cost: $25.99
Purchase:
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Film Review Stew
Favorite? No.
Stew Poo-Poo? No.
Newsworthy:
During the first part of
the movie (1910-1919), Fernanda Montenegro plays the part of Dona Maria,
and her real-life daughter, Fernanda Torres plays the part of her
daughter Aurea. As the movie jumps to 1942, Montenegro now plays the
part of Aurea, and Torres plays the part of Aurea's daughter, Maria.
When the movie jumps again to 1969, Fernanda Montenegro plays the part
of both Aurea and Maria.
Movie Quote: "I
don't want to live here!"
Other Actors/Actresses
from The House of Sand
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