Architecture and Environment in Film

Course Number: 2541156

Lecturer: Ajarn Brian Lewis

Utopian Realities, Utopian Metaphors

“A Man’s Home is His Castle”
(Life as a House, 2001 by Irwin Winkler)

Final Assignment (INDIVIDUAL) 15 POINTS

PLEASE NOTE:
This is an INDIVIDUAL assignment

DUE: MONDAY, MAY 15, 2023

(HOMEWORK FILE NAME MUST HAVE YOUR FULL NAME (NO
NICKNAMES) AND BE WRITTEN AS IN THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLE!!)

YOUR NAME_ArchEnvFilm_Final Ass.pdf

Example: Somchai Wongsarak_ArchEnvFilm_Final Ass.pdf

***NOTE: I WILL NOT ACCEPT WORK THAT DOES NOT HAVE YOUR
NAME IN THE FILE NAME!!!

1. Create a PowerPoint presentation of 15-20 slides that illustrate

the concepts and themes in the film. You can do more than 20
slides, if necessary.

Lecture Reference:

Utopian Realities_Metaphors_Life as a House_2023

NOTE: I did not give you online references because I want you to do
your own research for this assignment. There are several reviews and
analyses of the film online.
Architecture and Environment in Film
Course Number: 2541156
Lecturer: Ajarn Brian Lewis

Life As A House (2001) by Irwin Winkler

NOTE: DO NOT ANSWER THESE AS INDIVIDUAL, ITEMIZED QUESTIONS. BUT,

INTEGRATE YOUR ANSWERS SO THAT THEY FIT TOGETHER WITHIN THE
SECTIONS OF YOUR POWERPOINT THAT COVER DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF
OVERALL THEMES. FOR EXAMPLE: QUESTIONS 3a. to 3k. ARE MEANT TO HELP
YOU FOCUS YOUR THINKING AND RESPONSE, NOT TO BE ANSWERED ONE
AFTER THE OTHER. BUT, MAKE SURE YOU COVER ALL 6 QUESTIONS IN YOUR
PRESENTATION.

The title and the story are metaphors.

1. What is the metaphor in the title?
2. What is the metaphor in the film’s story?
3. How do the following support these metaphors?
a. George’s life at the beginning of the film
b. George’s job as an old-time architectural model builder within the changing nature of the
company he works for
c. George’s discovery of his illness
d. George’s relationship with his son (Sam) and ex-wife (Robin) at the beginning, in the
middle and at the end of the story
e. The theme of “happiness” mainly concerning George, Sam and Robin (but, also other
characters, as well like Robin’s 2nd husband and her young sons etc.)
f. George’s (and also his ex-wife’s) relationship with his old house
g. The transformation of George’s son, Sam
h. The two main parts of the story of the house and what happens to it
i. Looking at the way George builds his new house. Does it connect in any way to his old
job as a model builder?
j. How do the materials and design reflect the location of the house
k. How do the materials, design and location of the house reflect George’s personality and
character (consider George’s talent as a skilled “Craftsman”)
4. A specific metaphor that can be applied to the story is the concept of “A Man’s Home is His
Castle”. Explain this in the context of George and his new house.
5. Interconnected with the metaphor of “Life as a House” is George’s Legacy. Explain this in the
context of transformation that takes place in the story.
6. Looking at Zaha Hadid’s Glasgow Museum of Transport as an architectural metaphor, think
about the idea of “the house as a heartbeat” in the theme of metaphor in this film, and how it is
linked to George’s legacy. Consider the following quotes:
Architecture and Environment in Film
Course Number: 2541156
Lecturer: Ajarn Brian Lewis

“There are so many young people who are homeless. They may have a building to live in,
but they are homeless in their hearts. That is why the most important practice of our time is
to give each person a home. Be a home for them. Each of us has to serve as the home for
others.”
Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers, Thich Nhat Hanh

“A house is made with walls and beams; a home is built with love and dreams.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Metaphor
a figure of speech containing an implied comparison, in which a word or phrase ordinarily used for one
thing is applied to another.
Examples: “She is feeling blue”, “The classroom was a zoo”, “Life is a roller coaster”, “The old man
was a dinosaur”, “He has a brain like a computer”, “School is a prison”
Visual Metaphor
A representation of a person, place, thing, or idea by way of a visual image or object that suggests a
particular association or point of similarity

“A Man’s Home is His Castle” is a metaphor

One is the master of one’s domain (place where one lives) and one can do what one wants. It is not just
about control of one’s living space and being the “boss” of the house, but control of one’s life. It can be
about benevolence, inclusion and allowing others to share one’s space on one’s terms.

Architecture as visual metaphor - Zaha Hadid & “house as a metaphor” or the “Visual House”
Glasgow Museum of Transport – the house form represented as a ‘heartbeat’
i.e. “A house as the heartbeat of the family”