Life as a House

When a man is diagnosed with terminal cancer, he takes custody of his misanthropic teenage son, for whom quality time means getting high, engaging in small-time prostitution, and avoiding his father. George Monroe, played by Kevin Kline, an architectural model fabricator, is living the bachelor's life in the old family shack on the coast of California. As he enlists his son Sam, played by Hayden Christensen, in helping him build a custom house, George slowly reconnects with Sam through tearing down the shack and building the house. Robin, Sam's ex-wife played by Kristin Scott Thomas, also joins in the construction, and she finds herself rediscovering George.