miguelfeyfer

"The house of the spirits" is quite awful. I live in South America, in a country that suffered a military dictatorship just like the one the movie tries to describe, and even though everyone knows movies may be far far away from reality, this particular movie treats viewers as both ignorant and stupid. Things are not so simple and linear as appears here, and of course political process are much more complicated and interesting that the plot in "The house...". If you can't show that complexity on screen is better not making a movie at all. There are a lot of examples of how can politics be seriously taken in cinema, without so many commonplaces. In some parts I felt that Carmen Miranda may appear within parrots and palm trees. When you talk about certain things you must be not only careful but respectful to your public's intelligence.

The movie is probably one of the best descriptions of conservative England in the 80's ever filmed. The accurate script, written by great novelist and play writer Hanif Kureishi is absolutely touching, and describe interracial relations is a raw way that I hardly ever seen. The characters are strong and clear, and the actors and actresses may be unknown for us -except Claire Bloom, of course- but some of them are great stars in India. What make the movie so strong is probably the simple but powerful story that tells a lot about human relations. Roland Gift shows himself a good actor as was a good singer in Fine Toung Cannibals. Many scenes are unforgettable, and the end is not only unexpected but shocking. The British cinema in the 80's appeared to pay more attention to people than their government, and "Sammy and Rosie..." is a good example of that. A great film from a team that deserved to be seen, Frears and Kureishi.