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Movies / On DVD / House of Sand and Fog
House of Sand and Fog

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House of Sand and Fog (2003)

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Reviews Counted:32

Fresh:28

Rotten:4

Average Rating:7.9/10

Consensus: Powerful and thought provoking film.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for some violence/disturbing images, language and a scene of sexuality

Runtime: 2 hrs 6 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Dec 19, 2003 Limited

Box Office: $12,924,917

Synopsis: Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly star in the powerful drama HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG as two people fighting over the same house. Connelly is Kathy, a troubled young woman struggling with addiction... Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly star in the powerful drama HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG as two people fighting over the same house. Connelly is Kathy, a troubled young woman struggling with addiction and her husband's departure. Lost in her funk, she fails to check her mail, which includes letters threatening to evict her. After she is thrown out of the house she grew up in--wrongly, it turns out, so she seeks legal representation--Massoud Amir Behrani (Kingsley) buys the property at auction with the goal of selling it at a huge profit so his family can live a better life. Behrani, a former colonel in the Iranian army, is determined to make his family's move to the United States a successful one--nothing matters more to him than his wife and son's well-being. But when he sees Kathy sleeping in a car outside his fence, he knows he is in for a fight. Based on the book by Andre Dubus III, Vadim Perelman's directorial debut is a fascinating study of family in the United States. Kathy has no one to turn to--her father is dead, her husband has abandoned her, and she's too frightened to seek help from her mother or brother. She falls for Lester (Ron Eldard), a deputy sheriff who claims to no longer love his wife. And Behrani is so dedicated to his wife (Shohreh Aghidashloo in a riveting performance) and son (Jonahtan Ahdout) that he blinds himself to Kathy's dire situation. HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG is a relentless, thought-provoking work that will linger with audiences long after the film ends. [More]

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Jennifer Connelly, Ron Eldard, Jonathan Ahdout

Starring: Ben Kingsley, Jennifer Connelly, Ron Eldard, Jonathan Ahdout, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Frances Fisher, Kim Dickens, Navi Rawat

Director: Vadim Perelman

Director: Vadim Perelman
Screenwriter: Vadim Perelman, Shawn Otto
Producer: Michael London, Vadim Perelman
Composer: James Horner
Studio: DreamWorks Distribution LLC

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Release:

Mar 30, 2004

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Reviews for House of Sand and Fog

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1 - 20 (sorted by date)
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Newsweek | comment Comment
11/01/07
David Ansen
David Ansen
Newsweek
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
09/26/05
Ann Hornaday
Ann Hornaday
Washington Post
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New York Magazine | comment Comment
08/07/04
Peter Rainer
Peter Rainer
New York Magazine
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New Yorker | comment Comment
08/01/04
David Denby
David Denby
New Yorker
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

You feel you not only know these people but where they come from.

Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
02/04/04
Mark Caro
Mark Caro
Chicago Tribune
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N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: New Republic | comment Comment
01/28/04
Stanley Kauffmann
Stanley Kauffmann
New Republic
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If this movie isn't quite the contempo-Greek tragedy it wants to be, it's still a powerful, almost unforgettable meditation on fate, cultural collision and the morality of renovating a house that isn't really yours.

Full Review Source: Salon.com | comment Comment
12/27/03
Andrew O'Hehir
Andrew O'Hehir
Salon.com
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Meticulously acted and unafraid of a difficult subject, House of Sand and Fog resonates with a quality that can be vital to art -- a lack of moral rectitude.

Full Review Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News | comment Comment
12/27/03
Robert Denerstein
Robert Denerstein
Denver Rocky Mountain News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

The movie's intense watchability can be traced directly to superb performances by Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
12/26/03
Desson Thomson
Desson Thomson
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

House of Sand and Fog doesn't deliver on the gut level of contest, and neither does it offer any other terms in which it does deliver for the audience.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
12/26/03
Mick LaSalle
Mick LaSalle
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Remember the name Shohreh Aghdashloo ... she is the soul of this pungent film.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
12/26/03
Carrie Rickey
Carrie Rickey
Philadelphia Inquirer
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A powerful tale of a personal conflict that turns tragic when emotions spin out of control.

Full Review Source: Houston Chronicle | comment Comment
12/26/03
Eric Harrison
Eric Harrison
Houston Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Like great fiction, House of Sand and Fog sees into the hearts of its characters, and loves and pities them.

Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
12/26/03
Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert
Chicago Sun-Times
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For all its histrionics, the movie never earns your sorrow.

Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
12/26/03
Wesley Morris
Wesley Morris
Boston Globe
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is a movie that has the strength of its convictions, and it's anchored by top-shelf performances that go out on a limb time and again.

Full Review Source: Dallas Morning News | comment Comment
12/26/03
Chris Vognar
Chris Vognar
Dallas Morning News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

In the current political climate, it's required viewing. We all need to think about tolerance and how, like sand, it can slip through our fingers.

Full Review Source: San Jose Mercury News | comment Comment
12/26/03
Glenn Lovell
Glenn Lovell
San Jose Mercury News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

This is an unforgettable portrait of decent, well-meaning, conflicted people moved to frustration, helplessness and grief.

Full Review Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune | comment Comment
12/26/03
Colin Covert
Colin Covert
Minneapolis Star Tribune
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It is powerful, powerful stuff.

Full Review Source: Detroit News | comment Comment
12/26/03
Tom Long
Tom Long
Detroit News
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

It's difficult to imagine that Kingsley could top his blistering performance in Sexy Beast, but here it is.

Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
12/26/03
Bill Muller
Bill Muller
Arizona Republic
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Perelman has directed Jennifer Connelly and Ben Kingsley, who play Kathy and Behrani, respectively, in the performances of their careers.

Full Review Source: Detroit Free Press | comment Comment
12/25/03
Detroit Free Press
Top Critic Icon Top Critic
 
 
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