The screenplay by Mark Andrus focuses on a man who is anxious to repair his relationship with his ex-wife and teenage son after he is diagnosed with terminal cancer.

[2] George Monroe, a jaded architectural model fabricator, is living the bachelor's life in the old family shack on the coast of California.

As he exits the building with the remaining model, he collapses and is rushed to the hospital, where it is revealed he has advanced stage cancer and any treatment would be futile.

In Character Building: Inside Life as a House, a bonus feature on the DVD release of the film, director Irwin Winkler confesses he never realized the rekindling love between George and Robin was a key aspect of the script until he saw the emotion displayed by Kevin Kline and Kristin Scott Thomas in their scenes together.

When the film was completed, the house was dismantled, moved, reconstructed, and enlarged to become a library for the Kenter Canyon Elementary School in Brentwood.

[6] The film includes the songs "What You Wish For" and "Rainy Day" by Guster, "That's the Way" by Gob, "Live a Lie" and "Somewhere" by Default, "Sweet Dreams" by Marilyn Manson, "Water" by ohGr, "Re-Arranged" by Limp Bizkit, "Both Sides Now" by Joni Mitchell, "Gramercy Park" by Deadsy, and "How to Disappear Completely" by Radiohead.

[10] Stephen Holden of The New York Times wrote “‘Life as a House,’ directed by Mr. Winkler from a screenplay by Mark Andrus, certainly means well, and its be-here-now philosophy is unarguably valuable.

But as it follows George's final months during a summer in which he forms a solid bond with his estranged son, it doesn't trust the audience enough to keep from laying on the schmaltz.”[2] Roger Ebert gave the film two-and-a-half stars, noting “some episodes in the movie seem especially contrived.”[11] However, he praised the performances of Kline and Thomas, saying the actors “are able to deepen their characters by sheer skill and depth of technique, so that we like them and care what happens to them.”[11] Despite the film's mixed reception, Christensen's performance received widespread praise.

It includes commentary by director/producer Irwin Winkler, producer Rob Cowan, and screenwriter Mark Andrus, as well as deleted scenes (one with William Russ, who was originally cast as Kurt Walker but replaced when he was injured in a motorcycle accident after filming began).