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'House of Sand': Adapting to a daunting land

The sands of the Brazilian desert and the metaphorical sands of time drift and shift throughout Andrucha Waddington's visually and emotionally stunning and stark multigenerational drama, House of Sand (Casa de Areia). This arid, dusty land is never tamed, but instead it has a transforming influence on the female characters who become stranded in this unforgiving landscape.

Sony Pictures Classics 'House of Sand' B The verdict: A poetic depiction of life in the Brazilian desert, with performances almost as stunning as the visuals. Director: Andrucha Waddington Starring: Fernanda Montenegro, Fernanda Torres, Ruy Guerra, Seu Jorge, Luis Melodia Run time: 114 minutes Release date: August 11, 2006 Language: Portuguese with English subtitles Rating: Rated R for some graphic sexuality. On the web Official movie site View the trailer    Trailers require Quicktime [an error occurred while processing this directive]

The film begins in 1910 as a pregnant woman (Fernanda Torres) and her stern mother (Fernanda Montenegro, Oscar nominee for Central Station, Torres' real-life mother) are forced to leave their nation's capital city for this barren territory by the mother-to-be's husband, a stubborn, determined, misguided man who has bought a few acres of this empty, barely habitable terrain.

Quickly, his crew caravan mutinies and abandons him, then he suffers a heart attack and dies, leaving the women to deal with their futures on their own.

Over the course of 60 years, they adapt, befriend the descendants of runaway slaves in an oasis-like fishing village and come to realize they are unlikely to ever see their urban home again. Over time, the actresses change roles, as Montenegro becomes the older version of Torres, who in turn becomes her own daughter. Initially confusing, it is an effective and economical way of suggesting how they age.

The performances are searing, as they need to be to compete with Ricardo Della Rosa's poetic cinematography.