House of Sand and Fog is a 2003 adaptation of Andre Dubus III's novel of the same name, diected by Vadim Perelman and starring Ben Kingsley, Jennifer Connelly, and Shohreh Aghdashloo.
Kathy Nicolo, a former drug addict, loses her Californian bungalow in an unfair legal dispute with the county and has nowhere else to go. Massoud Amir Behrani, an Iranian immigrant living the United States, buys it in hopes that he can fix it and sell it for a higher price to help his family. Both believe that they are entitled to the house and the conflict turns to tragedy.
The film contains examples of:
- Adaptation Distillation: The film for the most part is faithful to the novel up until the ending, which is considerably darker in the source material.
- Agony of the Feet: The movie has a scene where Kathy impales her bare foot on a board with a nail sticking out of it.
- Artistic License – Law: The entire premise of the film is seriously flawed. When Kathy's house is (wrongly) put up for sale for taxes, Behrani buys it outright and moves his family in. He refuses to sell it back to Kathy for anything less than full price. This is not how tax law works. Kathy would have time to pay off the taxes, or to show that she had already paid and the government had made a mistake, and she could take possession of her house once again. In anything resembling the real world, Behrani would be forced to move out of the house.
- "Both Sides Have a Point" Remark: The story refuses to take a side as both main characters have valid reasons for refusing to relinquish the house.
- "Could Have Avoided This!" Plot: Kathy's lawyer points out the whole situation would have been averted if she had just checked her mail. Of course, if her lawyer knew the first thing about real-life tax laws, the film itself would be very short.
- Creator Cameo: Dubus has a cameo in the film.
- Diabolus ex Machina: Deputy Lester Burdon essentially fulfills this in the third act when he barges in on the Behrani family taking care of Kathy and jumps to conclusions. Less so in the novel where his character is more developed, but in the film his character's role in the climax is considerably jarring.
- Face Death with Dignity: Unlike the book, Colonel Behrani is composed and dignified as he kills his wife and then himself.
- How We Got Here: The film opens and ends with the same scene of Kathy's character staring blankly at her house.
- Lighter and Softer: Dark as it is, the film's ending is this to the novel. After his son dies, Behrani finds Kathy still in his home and strangles her; she doesn't die. (This scene was shot and is available as a deleted scene.) Behrani later suffocates his wife with a pillow before killing himself. In the film, she goes willingly with a poisoned drink. The film also omits Kathy going to prison.
- Suicide Pact: In the film, Behrani and his wife agree to commit suicide together.
- Unconfessed Unemployment: Behrani doesn't want to admit to his family that the only work he can find is as a trash collector and convenience store clerk. He makes a point of wearing a suit and tie when he leaves for work and putting it on again before he comes home.