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The House of the Spirits

Play trailer Poster for The House of the Spirits R 1993 2h 18m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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32% Tomatometer 38 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
A rancher (Jeremy Irons), his clairvoyant wife (Meryl Streep) and their family face turbulent years in South America.
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The House of the Spirits

The House of the Spirits

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Critics Consensus

An enviable collection of sterling actors are all woefully miscast in The House of the Spirits, a plodding saga of magical realism that lacks much magic or realism.

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Critics Reviews

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David Ansen Newsweek 05/22/2018
The greatest actors in the world can't overcome a script that boils everything down to the Esperanto of cliche. Go to Full Review
Richard Schickel TIME Magazine 05/20/2013
The thing works in its goofy way, mainly because Bille August is a man of apparently dauntless conviction. He has written and directed every scene with serene authority. Go to Full Review
Michael Wilmington Chicago Tribune 05/20/2013
2.5/4
The flaws aren't fatal. The beauty and brilliance that might have been, don't preclude the quality and bravery that exist on the screen. Go to Full Review
Jeff Simon Buffalo News 02/29/2024
2/5
It's artsy polyglot baloney. Not house that's this divided against itself could possibly stand. Go to Full Review
Robin Holabird Robin Holabird 08/11/2021
Director Bille August creates striking visuals, and her standout cast never fails to hold attention, though it fails to catch Allende's nuance as a writer. Go to Full Review
Malcolm Johnson Hartford Courant 05/22/2018
Nearly every magic detail, many key characters and half a generation has been sacrificed to clarify the plot. But so much has been cut away that only the skeleton of the story remains. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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@Ericka255 3d Great film based on this fantastic novel by Isabel Allende. Of course, there is so much you can squeeze in a bit more than two hours, but the movie is GREAT. It is a classic that everyone should watch. See more Mo S. @9mr_0 5d فلم جيد وقصه جيده لكن مدة الفلم تسبب ملل See more Zane T Nov 24 Despite its failures to cast proper South American actors in the main roles the film does have a tragic story, a great score by Zimmer, great cinematography, and terffic actors with good acting especially from Jeremy Irons. Sadly the film uses white actors to as the main characters with any international actors like Banderas being a side/supporting character who does not have a big part until the third act of the film. It is also very out-dated how they made the Spanish speaking workers just slaves/workers/farmers for the white family. Salma Hayek who auditioned for this film was also rejected. Banderas who isn't Latin American origin rather Spanish would still be a better lead actor in this film than any of the white actors they chose for the leads. See more Flavio B Nov 8 I cried in some scenes. Fantastic rendition from Meryl and the rest of the cast. The is a lot going on in the movie, and I seriously don´t understand the bad ratings... It is still one of my favorite movies. See more Jul 21 Such accomplished actors wasted in this movie, badly directed,bad script. See more thiago s @Thiagostone Jul 11 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more Read all reviews
The House of the Spirits

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Movie Info

Synopsis A rancher (Jeremy Irons), his clairvoyant wife (Meryl Streep) and their family face turbulent years in South America.
Director
Bille August
Producer
Bernd Eichinger
Screenwriter
Bille August
Production Co
Lionsgate, Neue Constantin Film, House of Spirits Film, Costa do Castelo Filmes
Rating
R
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 8, 2016
Runtime
2h 18m
Sound Mix
Surround, Stereo
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