The book on which this movie was based is a wonderful, engaging story of the Trueba family, with a typical South American ambiance, in a way similar to the stories of another great author, Gabriel Garcia Marquez. The House of the spirits has all the ingredients for a entertaining, gripping and compelling motion picture. The movie however didn't quite live up to my expectations.
What really bothered me was that the chronology of the movie didn't match the book. Clara for example lives through the revolution, while in the book she passes long before the civil war. The most annoying 'error' is that in the movie the storyline of Alba has been replaced by Blanca. I can't understand why it wouldn't have been possible to be true to the book in this feature. Maybe the director thought it necessary for Winona Ryder to play a larger role.
Furthermore, there were little wonderful elements of the book which might have been added to the movie, without much trouble. A single shot of Barabas, Clara's dog, when she marries Esteban. The time when Esteban breaks almost every bone in his body, because of an earthquake. This would have added even more depth to the character, one of Jeremy Iron's finest acting jobs.
I also thought it was a shame that the twins Clara also gave birth to, Jaime and Nicolas, were not included in the script. But because there story lines would have added substantially to the length of the picture and therefore would have made it too long for a regular movie, I understand why they are left out. That might also be the reason why Alba plays just a minor role, because her life is quite intertwined with that of her uncles.
To conclude, movies based on a novel rarely give a satisfying image and for people who haven't read the book it will probably be quite entertaining. If you have read the book, however, it is hard to accept the choices made in the script and you end up feeling disappointed with the result.
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