The Glass House [DVD] [2001]

The plot is fairly straightforward. Sixteen year old Ruby Baker (Leelee Sobielski) and her brother, eleven year old Rhett (Trevor Morgan)), are living the lives of normal, carefree kids with their loving parents, Grace (Rita Wilson) and David Baker (Michael O'Keefe). The world, as they know it, comes crashing down on them when their parents unexpectedly die in what appears to be a routine car accident. The family lawyer, Alvin Bergletter (Bruce Dern), informs the children that the terms of their parents' have left them wealthy and in the care and custody of former neighbors, Erin (Diane Lane) and Terry Glass (Stellan Skarsgard).

Before you know it, Ruby and Trevor are esconced in the Glass Malibu home, a huge, luxurious, all glass structure. Immediately, the viewer senses something is wrong, as, amidst all this room and spaciousness, Ruby and Trevor are forced to share a bedroom. A series of unsettling events serve to make Ruby suspicious of the motives of Erin and Terry Glass and cause her to make unwelcome inquiries into the deaths of her parents. What she discovers, however, comes as no surprise to the discerning viewer, who should have little difficulty in figuring out what is going on.

The performances, by and large, are adequate. Leelee Sobielski is somewhat wooden in her portrayal of Ruby, mistaking a deadpan expression for seriousness of purpose. Trevor Morgan is merely annoying, but this is brought about by a script that requires him to utter the word, "Sweet", everytime he is pleased with something. Their characterization of the children makes it difficult for the viewer to warm up to either of them.

Diane Lane sleepwalks through her part, which may be fitting considering her specific personal problem in the film. Stellan Skarsgard is appropriately menacing in a very controlled way. His is one of the better performances. The only odd note is that an accent of sorts seems to occassionally slip out, which is somewhat jarring. Bruce Dern is excellent as the family attorney, as is Chris Noth in the small role of the children's estranged uncle.

The DVD provides a very clear, high quality picture and sound. Other than the usual commentary and filmmaker interviews, the DVD does not offer all that much in terms of bonus features. For those who enjoy the inclusion of deleted scenes, this DVD offers exactly one such scene.

While Miss Sobieski looks a tad older than the sweet sixteen age of her character Ruby Baker, her natural sweetness and vulnerability make her quite convincing as a normal young teenager whose life is thrown into chaos when her parents are killed in an automobile accident. Ruby and her eleven-year-old brother Rhett (Trevor Morgan) go to live with Terry and Erin Glass (played quite impressively by Stellan Skarsgard and Diane Lane), their former neighbors and designated custodians. Their new home is an impressive, unique structure with many glass walls and an ultra-modern interior design. Rhett settles in quite well, but Ruby is uncomfortable from the start. Early on, she realizes that the Glasses are not the perfect couple they purport to be. At first, she attempts to rationalize her problems, ascribing her difficulty adjusting to her new life as a natural reaction to her grief over the loss of her parents and the social dislocation she feels upon moving to a new city and attending a new school. Little things continue to happen, however, and she soon finds herself seeking help from her parents' estate lawyer. When she learns that her parents' estate adds up to four million dollars, she finally begins to suspect her guardians of having somehow played a part in her parents' deaths and to fear that she and her brother are in grave danger as long as they remain in the house.

I thought the ending played out very well. There was one important plot point which I did not expect (along with a few that I did), and the suspense that had been building up consistently throughout the movie reached its peak at just the right time. I don't find any real absurdity to the ending - slightly clichéd: yes, but absurd: no. I think Sobieski is just wonderful and quite convincing in her role of what is a pretty typical teenaged girl forced to deal with a terrifying, almost hopeless situation. The film succeeds as well as it does, in my opinion, because Lane and Skarsgard give strong performances of their own opposite Sobieski's. The end result is a suspenseful triumph that I found refreshingly thrilling and convincing.

Although somewhat predictable in parts, there's plenty of nail-biting action that keeps you hooked for the entire duration. Brilliant performances from all actors, especially Stellan Skarsgard.

DVD special features include interviews, the original trailer for the film and deleted scene.

To sum up, a must-see film and worthy addition to my DVD collection.