slake09 An American boy goes to Paris after his mother commits suicide, becomes and artist and then discovers himself and returns to the States so he can make things right with his former friends.I have to think that the people who are rating this movie so highly are all X-Files fans, even though there are no aliens or serial killers in it. Don't be fooled, this movie blows chunks.The story is incoherent, with little or no explanation of what people are doing or why. When you do get an explanation, it doesn't fit the story that went before it. What it does is bore you. For all the acting talent in the film, it just isn't interesting. I spent the whole movie wondering when sex-addict Duchovny was going to bang someone. Maybe he was doing it behind the scenes; they should have filmed that instead.What comes across is a story of a self-obsessed artist worrying about minor incidents in his life and wanting to make them right somehow - even though they didn't seem that wrong to begin with. There aren't any particularly interesting or shocking revelations, despite the mention of a big secret in the first few minutes. It's just a guy thinking that his life is as interesting to you as it is to him. It's not.I saw in the trivia that Duchovny claims he wrote the script in a week, that's entirely believable. The guy can act, there's no doubt, but writing and directing are obviously beyond his talents.Why Hollywood keeps greenlighting these self-discovery stories is beyond me. I discover myself in the shower every morning but I don't bother making a movie about it. Mine would probably be better than this one, though; at least there would be some nudity.

oodus347 They say David Duchovny took six days to write the script for this movie. That sounds about right.This movie is one of the worst films I've ever seen and I've seen Gigli. It's not as bad as Gigli, but that's like saying Saddam Hussein wasn't as bad as Adolf Hitler.Tom Warshaw has been living in France with his French wife and 13-year old son. He has been pretending to be French all this time. He reveals to his wife that he is actually American. For some reason, this comes as an earth-shattering reveal for her, despite the fact that she always commented on her husband's American accent. Also, their son - remember, he was born in France and never knew his father was American - speaks perfect American English without a hint of French accent. That's just one of several huge plot holes in this movie.The main bulk of the movie is a flashback to Tommy's youth in New York City during the 1970's, as he explains to his wife why he has been hiding in France. His best friend as a boy was Pappas, a retarded adult played terribly by Robin Williams. I assume Duchovny thinks that "retarded" is someone who is just sort of dumb, because Pappas comes off only mildly slow at times, while other times he comes off as just Robin Williams. Yes, Williams actually fits in his tired improv schtick although he is supposed to play a person who is mentally slow.Tommy's mother, played by Duchovny's wife Tea Leoni, is a pill-popping nurse who is distraught over the recent death of her husband. Leoni does a good job, but she mainly just smokes a lot and yells at Tommy for things that don't seem to be too important. The script didn't give her much to work with. Tommy also befriends a lady (whom he calls "Lady") who is in prison and offers him advice through her jail window (this house of detention is called "House of D" for short, thus the title). Tommy has no qualms yelling his personal problems out loud on a city street so this incarcerated felon can offer him advice, and he does so many times without care.I don't want to bore you with the entire summary of the movie, but plot holes are abound in this film that tries way too hard to be touching but comes off as, well, bad. Real bad. Real real bad. Near the end of this train wreck, the script gets cornier and cornier and ends with a laughably crappy ending.Critics tore "House of D" apart and rightfully so. I can't believe some people actually like this movie. It is a painful film to sit through and I felt weak afterwards - not from emotion, but from how terrible it was.

jpschapira Rule: No Robin Williams film is bad. Now we can begin talking about "House of D", the film written and directed by David Duchovny about a man reviving his past so he can find himself. This is Tommy, in the skin of Duchovny as an older man and in that of Anton Yelchin as a young boy. The plot line the director has created is not what we could call original; it's what we know as refreshing.In one of New York's many neighborhoods Tommy spends time with his best friend Pappas (Robin Williams), a retarded man who works as a janitor in Tommy's school. "Pap-ass", Tommy calls him, and of course the man calls the boy "Tom-ass". They both deliver food and play baseball with the kids of the different schools.In his first full-length script, Duchovny experiments with adolescent love and friendship in his own way, as he puts the main characters through a test. What the actor writes and directs seems to be very personal, very urgent for some reason. The film looks like if it was done in a hurry; the cinematography is too simple, the edition is too forced.Going back to the script, there are lots of things the viewer could ask Duchovny, like the speech from the beginning of the movie, which is pretty weird; like the title reference, which we understand, but we don't see it as crucial to the story as it is supposed to be for Yelchin's character. The story itself has something out of place; like if it had no reason of being (you'll see what I mean). The figure of the mother, played passionately by Tea Leoni, doesn't seem to fit completely.But the movie is watch able and moving at times and there are other things we find inspiring between the silly moments of the screenplay. What is silly sometimes becomes incredibly funny; mostly the material Robin Williams has to deal with, which lies in a fine line between comedy and drama. I may sound stupid but he actually looks like a retarded individual and he shines eventually throughout the film and we are as grateful as ever.Erykah Badu has one of the most powerful characters I've seen in a long time and her performance is equally powerful. And Alton Yelchin is one in a million. His voice is so peculiar, his manners are so carefully measured, the film lies on his shoulders and he doesn't care. This is an actor so talented that he hasn't turned twenty and you can trust him a whole movie.Duchovny doesn't even act in the film, but he shouldn't because this project means for him as a director; as a storyteller. And it's difficult to classify his piece: full of power but difficult to understand, exciting but incomplete. I had a lot of expectations with "House of D"; in the end most of them were fulfilled, but I'm sure next time around Duchovny will find something really worthy inside his house and we will be amazed. Rule: No Robin Williams film is bad.

jaredmobarak David Duchovny has crafted a beautifully touching film with House of D. It is a coming-of- age story of sorts as his character narrates what happened to him around his thirteenth birthday. Being that his own son, in France, is now turning into a teenager, he feels that the time is finally right to tell his wife the reality of his past. Much happened to the young Tom Warshaw in the days leading to what should have been a joyous date. He was a standout student in his private Catholic school, hanging with his best friend Pappas, his neighbor who was mentally retarded and employed as a janitor at the school. While being 40 years old, Pappas was basically a 13 year old child as well. Once Tom discovered the fairer sex and began hanging out with a girlfriend, his friend realized he just couldn't follow. Emotions run high as Pappas tries to win back the one person who really treats him as a human being by stealing a bike the two have been saving money for. This one event creates a snowball effect as Tom's life spirals out of control, causing him to need to grow up much quicker than he should have to, making tough decisions which ultimately lead to his life in Paris as a new man.House of D is the feature debut for Duchovny as a writer/director; he proves himself admirably in both positions. The story is nicely balanced between narration and dialogue. We are shown the time of Tom's life that really created him. While the story itself is well-written and uses a believable story arc, making what could have been clichéd contrivances work in the final scope of things, it is the acting that really drives the film. It appears Duchovny is an actor's director, getting amazing performances from stalwart thespians as well as capable newcomers. Téa Leoni is great as Tom's mother who has lost her husband and is working as a nurse to try and bring her son up right, yet can't shake the void in her heart left by the loss; Robin Williams deftly handles the challenges in playing Pappas as he doesn't overdo it, (besides the unnecessary fake teeth), this isn't a showy performance, but instead subtle and emotive; Frank Langella does well as the school's reverend, adding a solid disciplinary figure with some nice comic moments; and relative newcomer—I believe this is his first starring role —Anton Yelchin who balances the angst and premature responsibility for those around him to perfection. Yelchin reminded me of Emile Hirsch, in appearance and personality as both play the older than their years character while still retaining the necessary youth, and both star in the forthcoming Alpha Dog which has garnered good buzz along with an intriguing trailer.Singer Erykah Badu provides a breakthrough role here as well. She has acted in a couple films before, but here she really shines as Tom's guide on high. Imprisoned in the titular House of D, her voice comes down to Yelchin's character with advice among the other prostitutes yelling to their pimps on the street. Helping with girl problems and issues of respecting those you love, Badu delivers her lines with purpose and meaning through the bar cells with only a mirror shard to see him by. When she teaches Tom how to dance one dusky evening, she provides the music for which to gain rhythm from. The scene is light and touching, sowing the seeds of their relationship and the impact she had, although briefly, on his life. This distant bond culminates in a wonderful moment during the dénouement between her and Duchovny where the weight of his past is finally lifted from his shoulders.