2007’s release Fracture, starring Ryan Gosling and Anthony Hopkins didn’t receive many industry accolades. Surprising, given the stellar performances and the
stylish production. Reviewers complained that it should have been better than it was, or that the plot was unoriginal or predictable. No matter. To those with an interest in the built
environment, the casting of Peter Tolkin’s Sherman House made the film infinitely watchable. Restrained and elegant, the house provided the perfect crime scene, complicit in the murder of its
hostess. 

This film pits the generations against each other. An upstart young lawyer (Gosling), against a methodical aeronautical engineer (Hopkins) charged with the
murder of his wife. For the most part, generation Y comes off inadequate and ill prepared, outplayed by the more experienced party.

 Hopkins is pitch perfect in his role. Delivering with a steely conviction and calculating intellect, he brings
an authenticity to the material which could have been a bit cliched in someone else’s hands. 
The Sherman house also delivers. As an extension of Hopkins character, its precise lines and  considered floor planning amplifies
the staged events its owner sets in motion.  A clock installation added to the centre of the house by the production team reinforces the sense of chilling
premeditation.