The House of the Spirits (1993)

Chile, second half of the 20th century. The poor Esteban marries Clara and they get a daughter, Blanca. Esteban works hard and eventually gets money to buy a hacienda, eventually to become ... See full summary »

Director:

Bille August

Writers:

Isabel Allende (novel), Bille August

Stars:

Meryl Streep, Glenn Close, Jeremy Irons

11 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Meryl Streep	...	Clara del Valle Trueba
Glenn Close	...	Férula Trueba
Jeremy Irons	...	Esteban Trueba
Winona Ryder	...	Blanca Trueba
Antonio Banderas	...	Pedro Tercero García
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Nívea del Valle
Maria Conchita Alonso	...	Tránsito Soto
Armin Mueller-Stahl	...	Severo del Valle
Jan Niklas	...	Count Jean de Satigny
Sarita Choudhury	...	Pancha García
António Assunção	...	Man at Cattlemarket (as António Assumpção)
Julie Balloo	...	Young Lady
Frank Baker	...	Intelligence Officer
João Cabral	...	Soldier
Miguel Guilherme	...	Soldier

Storyline

Chile, second half of the 20th century. The poor Esteban marries Clara and they get a daughter, Blanca. Esteban works hard and eventually gets money to buy a hacienda, eventually to become a local patriarch. He becomes very conservative and is feared by his workers. When Blanca grows up, she falls in love with a young revolutionary, Pedro, who urges the workers to fight for socialism. It is unavoidable that Pedro and Esteban are pitted against each other. Esteban tries to stop the love affair between Pedro and his daughter by all means possible but soon Blanca becomes pregnant and has a daughter. The void between father and daughter seems unbridgeable when Blanca moves in with Pedro.

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Plot Keywords:

farm | revolutionary | death | money | conservative | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for strong sexuality, and for violence

Details

Country:

Portugal Germany Denmark USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

1 April 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

La casa de los espíritus

Filming Locations:

Alentejo, Portugal

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$6,265,311 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Costa do Castelo Filmes, Det Danske Filminstitut, Eurimages

Technical Specs

Runtime:

140 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based on Isabel Allende's bestselling novel.

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Goofs

Alba is eating KFC, but the KFC name/logo wasn't adopted until the 1990s (it was formerly Kentucky Fried Chicken), it's in a basket instead of a box, and the chain wasn't franchised in South America in the 1970s anyway.

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Quotes

Férula Trueba: I would like to be a man... for also to leave.
Esteban Trueba: And I am happy for not being a woman.

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Connections

Referenced in E! True Hollywood Story: Winona Ryder (2002)

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Soundtracks

"Chant Funéraire, op. 117"
Composed by Gabriel Fauré
Performed by Musiques des gardiens de la paix
Published by Durand S.A. Editions Musicales
Courtesy of Arpège S.a.r.l.

User Reviews

a great injustice to Allende's novel

We all know a movie never does complete justice to the book, but this is exceptional. Important characters were cut out, Blanca and Alba were essentially mushed into the same character, most of the subplots and major elements of the main plot were eliminated. Clara's clairvoyance was extremely downplayed, making her seem like a much more shallow character than the one I got to know in the book. In the book we learn more about her powers and the important effects she had on so many people, which in turn was a key element in the life of the family. In the movie she was no more than some special lady. The relationship between Esteban and Pedro Tercero (Tercero-third-, by the way, is the son and thus comes after Segundo-second-) and its connections to that between Esteban and his grandson from Pancha García (not son, who he also did recognize) is chopped in half and its importance downplayed.

One of the most fundamental things about the book that the film is all but stripped of: this is called "The House of the Spirits." Where is the house? The story of 3-4 generations of a family is supposed to revolve around the "big house on the corner," a line stated so many times in the novel. The house in fundamental to the story, but the movie unjustly relegates it to a mere backdrop.

If I hadn't read the book before, I would have never guessed that such a sappy, shallow movie could be based on such a rich and entertaining novel.