SEEN FROM A DISTANCE, IT’S PERFECT.

When everything falls apart for architect George Monroe (Kevin Kline), he decides to spend his last months building the house of his dreams – together with his estranged son Sam (Hayden Christensen).

Inspired by Kurosawa’s Ikiru (1952), director Irwin Winkler and his team put together a predictable, slightly overlong and clichéd film about a dying man’s quest… and ultimately succeeds in tugging at our heartstrings.

The film is beautifully shot, has an irresistibly weepy ending and features good performances, not least by Kline who looks increasingly thin and frail in an unusually convincing way. 

2001-U.S. 124 min. Color. Widescreen. Directed by Irwin Winkler. Cinematography: Vilmos Zsigmond. Cast: Kevin Kline (George Monroe), Kristin Scott Thomas (Robin Kimball), Hayden Christensen (Sam Monroe), Jena Malone, Mary Steenburgen, Mike Weinberg, Scott Bakula. 

Trivia: Co-produced by Winkler.