Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
When Ruby and Rhett's parents are killed in a car accident, their carefree teenage lives are suddenly shattered. Moving to an incredible house in Malibu with the Glasses', old friends of the family, seems to be the beginning of a new life for them.
The Glass House is a competent but formulaic psychological thriller that fails to distinguish itself from similar late-90s/early-2000s teen-in-danger fare. The plot telegraphs its twists early and relies on genre conventions without subverting them, making the central mystery feel thin. The acting is serviceable — Leelee Sobieski delivers a committed performance as Ruby, and Stellan Skarsgård brings some menace as the antagonist — elevating the material somewhat above its script. Cinematography captures the sleek Malibu aesthetic adequately but doesn't use the glass-house setting to its full visual potential, missing opportunities for voyeuristic or claustrophobic tension. Novelty is low; the premise of sinister guardians threatening orphaned children had been well-trodden by this point, and the film adds little fresh to the formula. The ending resolves predictably and without much impact, leaving little impression beyond a standard genre conclusion.