The House of the Spirits (1993)

Director:

Bille August

Writers:

Isabel Allende (novel)
Bille August (writer)

Release Date:

1 April 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Plot:

Chile, second half of the 20th century. The poor Esteban marries Clara and they get a daughter, Blanca...

Plot Keywords:

Senator | Martial Law | Selective Mutism | Torture | Corporal Punishment

Awards:

11 wins

Cast

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

Also Known As:

Åndernes hus (Denmark)
A Casa dos Espíritos (Portugal)
Das Geisterhaus (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong sexuality, and for violence.

Runtime:

140 min | Germany:141 min | Spain:146 min

Country:

Portugal | Germany | Denmark | USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Brazil:16 | Netherlands:16 | Iceland:16 | UK:15 | Portugal:M/12 | Canada:R (Ontario) | USA:R | Finland:K-16 | South Korea:18 | Philippines:R-18 | Sweden:15 | Germany:12 | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Alentejo, Portugal

Company:

Costa do Castelo Filmes

Goofs:

Factual errors: The Chilean army of the 1973 is depicted using the wrong equipment such as G3 rifles, M48 tanks, and Fiat G91 aircrafts. The correct weapons would be FAL rifles, M4 Sherman medium tanks, and either Hawker Hunter or F-80 Shooting Star aircrafts.

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.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Seinfeld: The Engagement (#7.1)" (1995)

Soundtrack:

La Cumparsita

Spectacular interpretations

Everybody always told me this movie was good, but I never remembered to rent it. So when I bought a DVD, this one was given to me and I could watch it. And I was overwhelmed. Every single actor or actress never did better than they did in this movie. Jeremy Irons was almost perfect (I just think that there should be a little more Spanian accent there); Glenn Close seems to fit any character she's into and make it look real, in this case, painfully real; and what can I say about Meryl Streep? How can she look as angelical as this? The sweetness and calmness she spreads are just incredible, I can't see anyone else in this character. However, I believe Wynona Rider and Antonio Banderas' love could be more developed, both are terrific actors and deserved to have more chances to show it so, but they surely didn't disappoint us when they are on screen. A very beautiful, melancholic movie, with performances you'll never forget.