(Casa de Areia, 2005) Andrucha Waddington’s latest feature, the melodramatic “House of Sand,” left me cold, despite its arid, sand-swept 1910 setting, much as her “Me You Them” (2000) did. A six-decades-long slog through the lives of two women, Áurea (Fernanda Torres), and her mother (Fernanda Montenegro), dragged to the most unpopulated reaches of Maranhão, a state on the coast of northeastern Brazil by Áurea’s daffy, demanding husband (Ruy Guerra) who’s bought a lot of empty land. It’s a lovely setting, aggravatingly utilized. Actor-musician Seu Jorge (“The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou”) is on hand as a compassionate salt dealer. Some may find allegory to spare and much to admire about the nobility of long-suffering women; some will make importunate comparisons to Werner Herzog, and others, like me, will suffer for much of “House of Sand”’s 103 minutes. 103m. (Ray Pride)
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