House of D (2004)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

David Duchovny

Writer:

David Duchovny (written by)

Release Date:

23 September 2005 (Turkey)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

See the world a little differently.

Plot:

By working through problems stemming from his past, Tom Warshaw, an American artist living in Paris, begins to discover who he really is, and returns to his home to reconcile with his family and friends. |

Plot Keywords:

Artist | Private School | Shaving | Secret | Impersonation

Cast

Anton Yelchin	...	Tommy
Robin Williams	...	Pappass
Téa Leoni	...	Mrs. Warshaw
Erykah Badu	...	Lady / Bernadette
David Duchovny	...	Tom Warshaw
Frank Langella	...	Reverand Duncan
Zelda Williams	...	Melissa
Magali Amadei	...	Coralie Warshaw
Olga Sosnovska	...	Simone
Orlando Jones	...	Superfly
Bernie Sheredy	...	Sasha (as Bernard Sheredy)
Stephen Spinella	...	Ticket Seller
Alice Drummond	...	Mrs. Brevoort
Harold Cartier	...	Odell Warshaw
Mark Margolis	...	Mr. Pappass

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sexual and drug references, thematic elements and language.

Runtime:

USA:96 min (Tribeca Film Festival) | USA:97 min | Argentina:97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-11 | Brazil:12 | USA:PG-13 (certificate #40700) | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Argentina:13 | South Korea:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Bob Yari Productions

Trivia:

Marks the film writing and directing debut of David Duchovny.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: Both Trump World Tower and 100 UN Plaza are visible in the 1973 New York City skyline. They were not finished until 2001 and 1986 respectively.

Quotes:

Tommy Warshaw: Solid according to you, lady, girls like fools and small balls. So I'm pretty much covered.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Crossover (2006)

Soundtrack:

As

A transporting period film with a few problems...

Set mostly in a flashback to 1973 New York City, this is at heart not a coming of age movie but a coming to terms movie. From the opening scenes in Paris, we're set up by a voice-over narrative to expect terrible events which would change a boy's life. And, true to its word, we are delivered a series of disasters, many of which are prefigured in a short-handed kind of way. But it doesn't really matter, because you know where the film is heading, and your reaction to the last 15 minutes coming out of the flashbacks will pretty much determine whether you like this film or not. (Note that the ratings here are split pretty dramatically between very positive and very negative.) The things that are right with the film are good, sometimes very good. At the top of the "good" list is Erykah Badu's outstanding performance as a prisoner in the Women's House of Detention , an urban jail with windows over the street, who offers conversation and advice to the young protagonist. Also, the evocative period setting, which puts to shame a lot of films with many times the budget. Finally, there are a few deft touches of humor in the dialog, particularly in the early scenes of school life. The other performances are a bit more uneven. Anton Yelchin, the younger version of Duchony's character, is often winning and natural, but when real crisis hits, I didn't buy his grief and desperation. Not knowing the Robin Williams role, I cringed a bit when he first appeared on screen, but his performance is for the most part fairly restrained -- at least by Robin Williams' standards. Ducovny and wife Tea Leoni were competent but not compelling. We saw this film at a preview that featured a Q&A with Ducovny afterward. He clearly has affection for the material and, if anything, set out to make an even more modest film, budget-wise, than this. This is potentially pretty dicey plot material and could have veered severely wrong, particularly toward sloppy sentimentality. While I don't think the film entirely escaped this, it's certain a better film than, say, the dreadfully manipulative, "The Notebook". If you're not expecting too much and you can appreciate the 70's period setting, you'll probably enjoy this. If you're expecting a genius writer-director first film out of Ducovny -- you will be disappointed. Bottom line: give Ducovny some space and let's wait for his second film before delivering an real judgment on his career as writer-director.