Life as a House
Short description
George Monroe is a middle-aged architect whose life has come apart. Divorced from his wife Robin and estranged from his teenage son Sam, he learns he has terminal cancer and decides to spend the time he has left building the house by the sea he had long dreamed of. He takes custody of Sam, a withdrawn and hostile boy, and tries to draw him into the work, hoping to repair their relationship and settle matters with the family he left behind.
Directed by Irwin Winkler, the film was his fifth feature, following At First Sight and preceding De-Lovely. Mark Andrus wrote the screenplay, and Winkler produced with Rob Cowan for New Line Cinema. Kevin Kline plays George, with Hayden Christensen as Sam, Kristin Scott Thomas as Robin, Jena Malone and Mary Steenburgen as neighbours, and Ian Somerhalder as Josh.
Released in October 2001, the drama runs 125 minutes. Made on a budget of about 18 million dollars, it took roughly 24 million dollars worldwide, a modest return. On IMDb it holds 7.5 from over 45,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.1 from 463 votes, both indicating a generally favourable audience response. A critics' rating of 5.3 from 106 reviews places it below those audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The house that George and his assistants built in the plot was meant to be demolished. The film's costume designer, Molly Maginnis, led a group of people who handled the reconstruction and repurposing of the building. Ultimately, it became the Kenter Canyon school library in Brentwood, California. The new library opened in April 2004.
- The video of George and little Sam playing on the beach was filmed by Kevin Kline's wife, actress Phoebe Cates. She had been filming Kevin and their son Owen on a beach in Bermuda.
- Before starting work on the film, Kevin Kline lost 11 kilograms. The actor was on a constant diet and was accompanied everywhere by a nutritionist. However, he was not actually ill; it was simply necessary to make the audience understand that his condition was steadily worsening.
- Actor William Russ was initially cast in the role of Kurt Walker. He appeared in one scene but then suffered an arm injury in a motorcycle accident and was replaced by Scott Bakula.
- During the filming of the movie, Hayden Christensen injured his hand. In the scene where George finally tells Sam that he doesn't have long to live, Christensen improvised by punching the wall. During subsequent takes, he refused the offer to place something soft where he was hitting, resulting in his knuckles being swollen and bleeding by the end of the shoot.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
