Independent Films, Film Profiles

House of D

House of D is David Duchovny's directorial debut in film, having previously directed an episode of The X-Files for television. The film also stars Erykah Badu, Frank Langella, Téa Leoni, Zelda Williams, Anton Yelchin, and Robin Williams. It was screened at the 2004 Tribeca Film Festival.An American artist living a bohemian existence in Paris, Tom Warshaw (David Duchovny) is trying to make sense of his troubled adult life by reflecting upon his extraordinary childhood. There is a flashback to Greenwich Village in 1973, as thirteen-year-old Tommy (Anton Yelchin) is on the brink of becoming a man. While his bereaved single mother (Tea Leoni) mourns the death of his father, Tommy escapes grief by causing trouble at school and making afternoon deliveries with his best friend Pappas (Robin Williams), a mentally challenged janitor. Following the romantic advice offered by Lady (Erykah Badu) - incarcerated in the infamous New York Women's House of Detention for shadowy reasons - Tommy experiences his first taste of love. Yet when an unexpected tragedy radically alters his world, Tommy must take a life-defining choice - one that will compel the adult Tom Warshaw, thirty years later, to confront his unfinished past.