Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Transparent Stone Throwing, January 7, 2002
My three-star rating is perhaps a bit generous, but I thought it was fairer than two stars, because this movie does deliver some real suspense. Every time a young actress today starts out delightfully innocent, it seems she has to be soon corrupted (or fade into oblivion). Wasn't Leelee Sobieski wonderfully sweet and lovable in DEEP IMPACT? Her innocence survived and still shone, albeit with a put-upon edge in NEVER BEEN KISSED. Then with Leelee the seemingly obligatory squandering came with exceptional harshenss and gratuitousness. In a seemingly pointless bit part disjunct from the rest of the movie, she suffered that perverse rite of passage in EYES WIDE SHUT. Ever since then, her characters seem stuck with a definite element of sniveling brat, never wholly rendered palatable even by heavy put-upon plot elements, such as playing a terminally ill character in HERE ON EARTH, or playing a victim of a plot most sinister in the present movie. The movie title is a double entendre; Glass is both a prominent material in the title house's construction and the surname of its occupants. Mr. and Mrs. Glass are the Godparents of Ruby, Leelee's character. They become her guardians after her parents die in a car crash. Mr Glass is played by Soren Starsgaard, who, if not already in danger of becoming typecast, certainly is after this movie. What are we to make of him? Early on we see him being beaten up by some obviously unsavory characters (loan sharks as it turns out). How if at all does this begin to reveal the plot's central tension? Not in a way completely palatable to me. There may end up being overkill in some plot elements. And the finally evolving central tensions may complete eclipse and overwhelm what looked at first central, so that the earlier tension is forgotten. I wanted a bit more of things being what they seemed at the right places, with no plot twist so overwhelming as to demand that I forget a former one. But if your tastes are different and those objections matter little or none to you, then you might find this a quite satisfying thriller building up to a taut climax.
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22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Transparent Stone Throwing, January 7, 2002
My three-star rating is, I think, a tad generous, but it seemed more fair than two, because this movie does have some real suspense. It seems that every young actress that starts out innocent these days must soon get corrupted (or fade into oblivion). Wasn't Leelee Sobieski so lovably sweet and innocent in DEEP IMPACT? Then her innocence acquired a put-upon edge in NEVER BEEN KISSED. Still good and likeable. But after that came the seemingly obligatory squandering of innocence. For Leelee that lurid rite of passage was exceptioally harsh and gratuitous, in a bit part disjunct from the rest of the movie in EYES WIDE SHUT. Ever since then her characters seem to have an inexorable element of sniveling brat, too potent to be completely eclipsed by heavy plot elements making her a put-upon character, whether playing a terminally ill girl in HERE ON EARTH or playing a victim of a plot most sinister in the present movie. The movie title is a double entendre; Glass is both a prominent material in the title house's construction and the name of it's residents. Mr. Glass is played by Soren Starsgaard, who, if not in danger of becoming typecast already, certainly is after this movie. He's a relative of Leelee's character and becoms her guardian after her parents die in a car crash. At first at least, Mr Glass seems a put-upon character. Early on we see him being beaten up by obviously unsavory characters, loan sharks as it turns out. How then do we want to see the movie develop from this point? Well, for me, not exactly as it in fact does develop. There may be overkill in some characterizations. And what looks like the developing plot tensions may end up so eclipsed and overwhelmed as to be forgotten. That's not exactly what I wanted. A little bit more of things being what they seemed in the right places would have made it more to my liking. But if your tastes are somewhat different and those objections matter little or none to you, you might find this a quite satisfying thriller as it builds up to a taut climax.
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12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A "Shattering" Thriller, September 27, 2001
In THE GLASS HOUSE, murder runs rampant amid the scenic backdrop of Malibu. An accidental dealth leaves two children, Ruby played by Leelee Sobieski and Rhett played by Trevor Morgan, orphans. They are placed into the custody of their neighbors, Trevor and Erin Glass.Their home has half of its structure made out of glass, a beautiful site, but one where the cold atmosphere clearly shows that life is about to change. Everything the kids do is monitored as no aspect of their lives is private. Somehow, Trevor and Erin seem to be everywhere imaginable, yet seemingly never around. Things really heat up once Ruby finds out about the skeletons in her new guardians' closet. Although the plotline is fairly predictable, the acting is quite good, and the suspense will give you goosebumps. Leelee Sobieski is wonderful in her role, and Diane Lane and Stellan Skarsgaard play excellent adversaries. GLASS HOUSE also features cameos by Chris Noth and Rita Wilson, completing the cast quite nicely. Overall, this is a fairly entertaining film that will definately make you flinch in your seat a couple of times. It won't dissappoint.
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