A Casa de vidro

I was surprised by this one, after having read some of the comments about it. My wife had insisted on several occasions to rent it, but I had managed to avoid it until now. The reason being that I'm not a great fan of ‘startle-you-scenes' movies, where story line comes second to all possible means to startle the audience out of their shoes (which I believe is a the wrong way in creating good horror/thriller action movies). The Glass House is however not one of these, and I suspect that is one of the reason some people have given it slack reviews. Here they seem to keep to more realistic theme, with characters re-acting in intelligent manner, instead of some idiots you often see in horror/thriller films. The interesting thing was that the girl in the movie suspected from the start that something was wrong, and tried to solve the situation. The authorities became part of the picture from the start, instead of the usual stupidity that someone ‘evil' resides in position of authority, denying the victim any help. The Glass couple were a bit unusual, though not overdoing it, and we can follow how they slip into their own nightmarish madness. Especially good was the scene were Mr. Glass is asking for a loan at a bank, displaying how, in fact, he was just a regular man. So all in all, this was just enough tension, in rather realistic environment, with surprisingly good acting all around. 7/10

You might initially be reluctant to give 'The Glass House' a try if you've been turned off by many recent "thrillers" as they often have been disappointingly by the book. This is your eerie psychotic chase thriller similar to movies like 'Pacific Heights' and 'Unlawful Entry.' And, though it does play by the rules (unforutnately), there is something about it that makes it more entertaining than the recent dismal fare (not that Pacific Heights wasn't highly entertaining).

Leelee Sobieski plays Ruby Baker, a kid going through the terrible teens. When she and her brother's parents die in a car accident, they move in with ultra-modern family friends, Terry and Erin Glass. You know right from the start that there is something dreadfully suspicious and exceedingly bizarre about the Glass couple, but you can never be too sure exactly what at first (that's the purpose of a thriller, to throw you a few hints and let your quick assumptions guide you into all the wrong paths so that you're--hopefully--pleasantly surprised when the real perpetrator and his motives are revealed). But, Ruby Baker is a smart kid who's ever-present skepticism about the intentions of her new surrogate parents, and starts trying to figure out what's wrong. Unfortunately, this movie does terribly follow the book when it comes to the main character being disbelieved by other well-meaning characters (social workers, lawyers, teachers, etc.) who consequently pay with their lives for their doubts and unwillingness to really investigate, and in turn, making things worse for poor Ruby. It also follows the book when it comes to the deranged finale and the he's-not-really dead ending.

But, there is something that makes this better than most of its kind. On the one hand, you're never sure whether you can always trust Ruby because even she, too, arrogant most of the time, seems like trouble. It's hard to sympathize for a character like that at first. And, not only does Stellan Skarsgård make an appropriate villain as Terry Glass, his wife (played by Diane Lane) is not entirely an innocent creature herself as most women are often written to be in the role of the creep's wife/girlfriend/mother, etc. A good mix of characters and a creepy setting, combined with a decent finale, make it just the perfect mix of suspenseful elements. And one that I would recommend seeing.

I turned this on and immediately started looking for something that would start in a half hour. I did not expect to be interested, but I couldn't stop watching.

Ruby (Leelee Sobieski) and Rhett (Trevor Morgan) lose their parents in a terrible car accident, and the Glasses, Terry (Stellan Skarsgård) and Erin (Diane Lane), take them in. Everything appears normal, Erin is a doctor, and Terry runs a big business, drives a Jag, and they live in a huge house. But everything isn't as it seems or we would have no movie.

Ruby starts to get suspicious about things she sees and hears, and the attempts of Terry to explain them seem to mollify her for a time. However, she finds things that are definitely wrong, and makes plans to escape with her brother.

This is where the thriller begins: car chases, and fights, and death and duplicity. It definitely kept my interest, and I suspect it will keep yours.

Having seen many thrillers, most of them being formulaic, I was somewhat excited to see this one, since it has a pretty good cast; Stellan Skarsgård, Leelee Sobieski & Diane Lane. The plot does, admittedly have some holes, but these newer thrillers are rarely(read: never) perfect. All things considered, it wasn't a disappointment, as I didn't have that high expectations. The plot is OK, fairly see-through and obvious though, but it does have some twists that I(even though I may be alone on this) wasn't expecting. The acting isn't anything special, but at least Skarsgård and Sobieski both pull of decent performances. The characters are reasonably well-written, none of them come off as one-dimensional stereotypes, even though some of them, in all honesty, more or less are. The script is fairly well-written, though it does have its share of cliches, but most films do, anyway. All in all, a fair addition to the thriller genre, nothing that will stay in your mind for a long while after seeing it. It will, however, most likely keep your interest for the duration of the film, and keep you entertained, too. I recommend it to fans of thrillers, it would help to be a fan of at least one of the actors, and it doesn't hurt to have reasonably low standards or expectations. 6/10

Please ignore the bad comments.

THE GLASS HOUSE is an interesting thriller that answers the question: 'What would you do if the only people you could turn to were the enemies?". The cast is great, the direction and design are beautiful, and the music score is very creepy.

It's a very good movie that has wrongfully received poor reviews. Of course it's predictable, but it's really, really enjoyable!