- Actors: Brie Larson, Woody Harrelson, Max Greenfield, Sarah Snook, Naomi Watts
- Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
- Disc Format: AC-3, Color, DTS Surround Sound, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
- Language: English
- Subtitles: Spanish
- Region: Region A/1
- Rated: PG-13
- Studio: LIONSGATE
- Release Date: November 7, 2017
- Run Time: 127 minutes
The Glass Castle has a messy narrative,
mostly because the film is based on a true story and real life is rarely as neat
and tidy as we expect our entertainment to be. This makes the countless loose
ends in the story understandable, even if it does not make the film any more
satisfying in its shortcomings. In adapting Jeanette Walls’ memoir, director
Destin Daniel Cretton and co-screenwriter Andrew Lanham introduce a number of
interesting ideas and relationships, but only one really becomes fully
developed in the limited run-time. One can’t help but wonder what a more
balanced film would have looked like, and how the dedication of the supporting
players would have been even more effective had there been more time for proper
character development.
The Glass Castle refers to an imagined
utopia for a non-conformist family, a fantasy palace created by their
free-spirited patriarch, Rex (Woody Harrelson). As a child, Jeanette (Ella
Anderson) believed in this pipe dream longer than the rest of her family, who
soon realize that a majority of Rex’s dreams are merely a way of escaping the
reality of their poverty-filled life. Although Rex talks a big game, able to
intellectually debate the decline of humanity in the technological advances of
society, the reality is that their separation from the social norms has much
more to do with alcoholism and his inability to hold a job as a result. Jeanette’s
mother (Naomi Watts) is just as bad, not only enabling her husband’s behavior,
but also neglecting the children herself in favor of her own artistic
aspirations. After an early sequence shows this neglect leading to grievous
injury, it is difficult to have any sympathy for the self indulgent patterns of
Jeanette’s bohemian parents, even though this seems to be the film’s primary
goal.
The film jumps
back and forth in time, with Brie Larson reuniting with the Short Term 12 director to play the teen
and adult version of Jeanette. At a certain point in their childhood, the four
siblings make the decision to find a way out of their dysfunctional family
home. Years later, Jeanette is a successful city woman in 1980s New York City, although
the narrative never convincingly shows us how this transition occurs. The
problem when they are children is the need to constantly move in order to avoid
the trouble that Rex brings on the family with his drinking and debt also makes
it difficult for them to have the consistency needed for growth, but somehow
Jeanette and the other children find a way to get an education and escape. The
fact that this is portion of the narrative is skipped over makes it difficult
to bridge the gap between young Jeanette and the sophisticated adult we are
introduced to, no matter how dedicated Larson’s performance may be.
The Glass Castle is also extremely
careful not to make any judgments about its characters, which allows them to be
treated with more love and sympathy than they may always deserve. In this way,
it shares many similarities with Captain
Fantastic, another film about an untraditional father putting his children
in neglectful situations to make a point about societal norms. Comparisons are
made even easier considering two of the cast members play children in both of
these movies. Although I can appreciate the urge to idealize the cherished
memories of real individuals, there are moments within The Glass Castle that seem to justify child abuse as a mere side
effect of creativity.
As with many
movies based on real people, the focus in this film seems to be on the performances
above all else, showcasing the actors’ ability to transform. Although Larson is
an anchor in the narrative, Harrelson and Watts
are a more consistent element of the film, changing little over the decades
that the movie takes place. Larson’s Jeanette is a relatable character, but we
never fully understand the internal struggle that pulls her back to the
dysfunctional family as much as she tries to fight against it. There is also a
sadly underdeveloped relationship with her fiancé, David (Max Greenfield),
which only confuses our understanding of Jeanette even more. Jeanette may be
the protagonist of the film, but the screenplay never allows us to peek behind
the curtains of her mind in the same way it makes sure we know Rex. This feels
like a problem, especially considering it was based on Jeanette’s memoirs.
The Blu-ray
combo pack comes with a DVD and Digital HD copy of the film, as well as the
extras on the actual disc. The highlight is a substantial making-of featurette
about the adaptation process, along with an additional interview with the real
Jeanette Walls. There is some repetition of information in these two features,
but they accurately show where the priorities were in the filmmaking process.
The additional extras include two extremely brief featurettes about music,
including one about the score and another about a single song on the
soundtrack. There are also a handful of deleted scenes.
Entertainment Value:
6.5/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 7/10
Historical
Significance: 6/10
Special Features: 6.5/10
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