The house of the spirits,the movie with no single mistake,I don't think any filmmaker could be more sincere,sensitive,deep and attractive more than the crew members of this film,specially Bille August,Jeremy Irons,Hans Zimmer and all the cast members,in outstanding harmony they gave us the core of all the feelings of Allende's Terrific novel.Watch the movie,mind the difference between the nature of a novel and the nature of a movie and don't make comparisons and then you will find yourself completely taken by this masterpiece,if not then better watch different type of movies

I first watched this movie at a theater in Cairo, Egypt around October or November 1996. Although released in 1993, it is still relevant to this day, which is only possible because it indeed is a rare masterpiece. For those who have not gone through the perils of evil politics and foreign intervention in their countries, it might be difficult for them to grasp the many meanings this movie delivers. They simply cannot relate unless they try to put themselves in the place of the movie's characters and what they were going through.There aren't enough words that can describe the pain a person can feel when his and his countrymen's freedom and personal liberties are taken away as a result of the unjust foreign policy of a another country and in the case of this movie, with the collaboration of some of his own arrogant countrymen.The story, The House of the Spirits, written by Isabelle Allende, who is a relative of the democratically elected President of Chile Salvador Allende who was deposed of - with foreign intervention - by the country's powerful General Augusto Pinochet, covers the turmoil Chile went through during that period of time - before the coup and after (without actually mentioning the real names of the players - instead she uses fictitious names). With the exception of only a few fairy-tale like scenes involving talented veteran actress Meryl Streep's telepathic supernatural character (and a few unnecessary love scenes), the movie was extremely well executed. Rarely does a movie combine such a solid team of actors and actresses as did this movie, Jeremey Irons, Winona Ryder, Antonio Banderas, Meryl Streep, Maria Alonso, Sarita Choudhury, Glenn Close, Joaquín Martínez, Grace Gummer, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Vincent Gallo, Miriam Colon and Hannah Taylor Gordon combined together did a great job telling this rarely told story genre. It's a must see for everyone wishing to enjoy excellent acting, a real story, and for those interested in politics, democracy and the transformation to complete military authoritarianism (far from boring as these topics might appear to some, the movie is very exciting), definitely a must see. It will hopefully demonstrate to you the horrendous effects of a foreign policy that doesn't place justice and fairness at the forefront of its priorities. I hope you enjoy it. :)

it is the right word for describe the epic story, the beautiful acting, the inspired adaptation . and for the high care for details who defines each scene. story of family and choices, crisis and principles, it is a large social portrait. the traces of drama are translated in powerful images. the music, the costumes, the atmosphere - parts of a great show about the fight against history. a film about sacrifices and about need of the other. cold, strange, sentimental, cruel in few scenes. but convincing at whole. one of rare works for the emotion of viewer because it has the gift to remember dramas who escapes from history book . short - real impressive.

In a carbon copy of the type of role that Vincent Price and George Sanders would have played in the 1940's, Oscar Winner Jeremy Irons gives a rather harsh performance as a true villain whom you want to see be killed off rather than the other characters in this who do die early on. He rapes a young woman living on his property (simply grabbing her as he gallops by on his horse) with no apparent motive or remorse, mistreats his sister (Glenn Close) and beats his wife (Meryl Streep) when she points out truths about him that prove he's a hypocrite after accusing their daughter (Winona Ryder) of being sexually loose.Ghostly visits of the dead return to remind him of the curse they placed upon him in life, rebels take over his regime while allowing him to keep his riches (rendering him powerless to truly enjoy them), and he's almost on the verge of being totally alone when God comes along to give him one more chance to atone. If you've ever longed to see the wonderful Meryl Streep and Glenn Close work together, this is it, and their characters share a closeness that can't be matched within Streep and Irons' marriage. But for Irons, the two sisters-in-law are living too "Glenn Close for Comfort" as underlying lesbian overtones indicate an affection Irons won't allow.He's not really capable of love, and his physical needs seem to be minus passion and any amount of tenderness. At least in "The Color Purple", a similar film where atonement came for a villain, you did see a lot more humanity in that character (played by Danny Glover) than you do with Irons here. I totally despised him even more than his sinister Klaus Von Bulow in "Reversal of Fortune" and longed to see him get his just reward long before the film was over.This covers four generations of two cursed families. It also covers a lot of history, and it seems to be a story probably better told as a mini-series rather than a 2 1/2 hour movie. Like the overlong "Dances With Wolves", I was ready to give up on this long before it was over, sensing that every time a plot was resolved it was ending, but it switched gears to move onto another storyline. By the time the film reaches the political intrigue where Ryder is violated in prison, I had to remind myself that it only had another half hour to go and just hang in there.Wasted in pointless supporting roles (actually nothing more than cameos) are Vanessa Redgrave and Armin-Mulher Stahl, and Antonio Banderas's character is never truly fleshed out to make much of an impact. While impressively filmed, there was too much psychological ugliness to make the beauty strike my eye. Sometimes an all star epic like this where the structure and presence of too many "A"-list stars make the pie too filling. Even if it is both the follow-up for Irons and Streep, Irons and Close, and the chance to see the two greatest divas of the past 30 years together that will remain in my cinematic eye, this one is a depressing indication that when two powerhouse actors want to work together, they should make sure that all the ingredients are there to make the project completely work.