"Glass House: The Good Mother" (2006)
Directed By: Steve Antin
Starring: Angie Harmon, Joel Gretsch, Jordan Hinson, Bobby Coleman, & Jason London
MPAA Rating: "R" (for some violence, terrorizing situations involving children, and language)
In 2001, a sleek and stylish thriller, starring Leelee Sobieski and Diane Lane, named "The Glass House" opened to mediocre reviews. Its box-office gross was equally mediocre so you can imagine my surprise when I heard that a straight-to-video sequel would be made. Now, I liked "The Glass House" due to its great casting, its slick appearance, and its intriguing concept, but it just wasn't the type of movie that warranted a sequel. Then I learned that it would have no connections to the original and that it was basically a sequel in name only and any hope I had (not much) fell off the face of the earth. It would take a lot to make this sequel worthwhile and that "lot" came in the form of Angie Harmon. Harmon is a phenomenal actress and completely aced her twisted and complicated role. While the movie as a whole is patchy, Harmon makes it work somehow.
Abby (Hinson) and Ethan (Coleman) Snow just recently lost their parents and need a place to live and guardians to care for them. Eve (Harmon) and Raymond (Gretsch) Goode just lost their son and are not ready to stop being parents. Thus, it seems as though they are perfect matches and, for a little while, they are. However, soon Abby becomes annoyed by Eve's overbearing attitude and the two begin a series of arguments that reaches its peak with Eve slapping Abby. Soon, everything spirals out of control and Ethan falls seriously ill. Eve refuses to take Ethan to the hospital, demanding that she be able to care for her at home. Abby realizes that this is not the first time Eva and Ray have adopted children that have fallen ill, but she refuses to let her younger brother end up like the other children all of whom did not escape the Goode family.
The performances in "Glass House: The Good Mother" are okay. Angie Harmon blew me away, but her performance really is the only one that did so. Harmon was just phenomenal. Joel Gretsch was a mixed bag here. At times, he seemed dead on with his performance. At others, he was just a little flat. Overall, it was an okay performance--nothing spectacular, but just adequate enough (for a straight-to-video film, that is). Jordan Hinson was also a little uneven, giving an emotional performance in some scenes and a dull performance in others. It seems to be a trend with this movie for the actors and actresses to give patchy performances. Jason London seems to be settling very comfortably into the straight-to-video market. It's unfortunate, because I saw promise from him in "The Rage: Carrie 2" (he and Emily Bergl were the only good thing about that horrendous movie). Here, I can still see the promise, it's just almost completely wasted on a nothing part. It's so unfortunate.
"Glass House: The Good Mother" displays excellent cinematography and a glossy, stylized direction that brings a certain elegance and beauty to the film. Angie Harmon gives a great performance and the concept is far creepier than that of the original. However, the plot is stretched a little too thin in many places and the movie becomes quite redundant. We get that Eve is crazy and we know that Abby hates her. There was no need to keep hammering it into the audience's brains. Also, the ending was just so disappointing. It was cheesy, clichéd, and didn't fit the rest of the movie. It just seemed tacked on. Overall, "Glass House: The Good Mother" is an okay movie, good for a straight-to-video movie, but not amazing. Somehow, it does work, though, and that is enough I guess.
Final Thought: "Glass House: The Good Mother" is an okay straight-to-video film, though nothing great.
Overall Rating: 5/10 (B-)
Directed By: Steve Antin
Starring: Angie Harmon, Joel Gretsch, Jordan Hinson, Bobby Coleman, & Jason London
MPAA Rating: "R" (for some violence, terrorizing situations involving children, and language)
In 2001, a sleek and stylish thriller, starring Leelee Sobieski and Diane Lane, named "The Glass House" opened to mediocre reviews. Its box-office gross was equally mediocre so you can imagine my surprise when I heard that a straight-to-video sequel would be made. Now, I liked "The Glass House" due to its great casting, its slick appearance, and its intriguing concept, but it just wasn't the type of movie that warranted a sequel. Then I learned that it would have no connections to the original and that it was basically a sequel in name only and any hope I had (not much) fell off the face of the earth. It would take a lot to make this sequel worthwhile and that "lot" came in the form of Angie Harmon. Harmon is a phenomenal actress and completely aced her twisted and complicated role. While the movie as a whole is patchy, Harmon makes it work somehow.
Abby (Hinson) and Ethan (Coleman) Snow just recently lost their parents and need a place to live and guardians to care for them. Eve (Harmon) and Raymond (Gretsch) Goode just lost their son and are not ready to stop being parents. Thus, it seems as though they are perfect matches and, for a little while, they are. However, soon Abby becomes annoyed by Eve's overbearing attitude and the two begin a series of arguments that reaches its peak with Eve slapping Abby. Soon, everything spirals out of control and Ethan falls seriously ill. Eve refuses to take Ethan to the hospital, demanding that she be able to care for her at home. Abby realizes that this is not the first time Eva and Ray have adopted children that have fallen ill, but she refuses to let her younger brother end up like the other children all of whom did not escape the Goode family.
The performances in "Glass House: The Good Mother" are okay. Angie Harmon blew me away, but her performance really is the only one that did so. Harmon was just phenomenal. Joel Gretsch was a mixed bag here. At times, he seemed dead on with his performance. At others, he was just a little flat. Overall, it was an okay performance--nothing spectacular, but just adequate enough (for a straight-to-video film, that is). Jordan Hinson was also a little uneven, giving an emotional performance in some scenes and a dull performance in others. It seems to be a trend with this movie for the actors and actresses to give patchy performances. Jason London seems to be settling very comfortably into the straight-to-video market. It's unfortunate, because I saw promise from him in "The Rage: Carrie 2" (he and Emily Bergl were the only good thing about that horrendous movie). Here, I can still see the promise, it's just almost completely wasted on a nothing part. It's so unfortunate.
"Glass House: The Good Mother" displays excellent cinematography and a glossy, stylized direction that brings a certain elegance and beauty to the film. Angie Harmon gives a great performance and the concept is far creepier than that of the original. However, the plot is stretched a little too thin in many places and the movie becomes quite redundant. We get that Eve is crazy and we know that Abby hates her. There was no need to keep hammering it into the audience's brains. Also, the ending was just so disappointing. It was cheesy, clichéd, and didn't fit the rest of the movie. It just seemed tacked on. Overall, "Glass House: The Good Mother" is an okay movie, good for a straight-to-video movie, but not amazing. Somehow, it does work, though, and that is enough I guess.
Final Thought: "Glass House: The Good Mother" is an okay straight-to-video film, though nothing great.
Overall Rating: 5/10 (B-)