Life as a House (2001)
Why is it entertaining to watch Kevin Kline in a movie where he’s supposed to be a dying, old man? Because it’s only two years after A Midsummer Night’s Dream and he’s not really old, and every actor likes to add the classic “I’m dying and my kids hate me” movie to their repertoire. If you don’t like those movies, obviously, avoid this one. But if you’re alright with them, and you like Kevin Kline (and who doesn’t?) check it out.
In this one, Kevin is divorced from Kristin Scott Thomas, unhappy, and estranged from his teenage son, Hayden Christensen. He’s an architect, and when he learns he has inoperable, untreatable cancer, his final wish is to build a house and leave it to his son. Without telling anyone he’s ill, Kevin manages to get custody of the wayward teen for the summer. Hayden is a holy terror and gets into all sorts of trouble, but, as the summer progresses, he starts to learn about himself, his family, and life through the metaphor of building a house. Hence the title.
This is a tearjerker, folks. No one likes to watch kids treat their parents rotten, and no one likes to see children in pain acting out in ways that will only cause them more pain. And it’s Kevin Kline—we don’t want to see anything bad happen to him! You’re going to see all sorts of painful scenes in this movie, but at least you’ll get to see some great acting to go along with it. If you’ve got Daddy issues, you’ll need an extra Kleenex.
More Kevin Kline movies here!
In this one, Kevin is divorced from Kristin Scott Thomas, unhappy, and estranged from his teenage son, Hayden Christensen. He’s an architect, and when he learns he has inoperable, untreatable cancer, his final wish is to build a house and leave it to his son. Without telling anyone he’s ill, Kevin manages to get custody of the wayward teen for the summer. Hayden is a holy terror and gets into all sorts of trouble, but, as the summer progresses, he starts to learn about himself, his family, and life through the metaphor of building a house. Hence the title.
This is a tearjerker, folks. No one likes to watch kids treat their parents rotten, and no one likes to see children in pain acting out in ways that will only cause them more pain. And it’s Kevin Kline—we don’t want to see anything bad happen to him! You’re going to see all sorts of painful scenes in this movie, but at least you’ll get to see some great acting to go along with it. If you’ve got Daddy issues, you’ll need an extra Kleenex.
More Kevin Kline movies here!