In filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton's adaptation of Jeannette Walls's 2005 bestselling memoir about a dysfunctional childhood, Walls's abusive, alcoholic father Rex is all-too-often seen through rose-colored glasses, or perhaps it just seems that way due to Woody Harrelson's colorful, manipulatively roguish interpretation. Working as a 1980s Manhattan gossip columnist, riding in a taxi after dinner with her financier fiancé (Max Greenfield), Walls (Brie Larson) spots her grubby, itinerant parents dumpster-diving on the Lower East Side—a sight that ignites a series of flashbacks. Nomadic Rex (Harrelson) and Rose Mary (Naomi Watts) were free spirits. An intelligent, self-destructive bohemian, Rex was unable to hold a job or cope with authority, while self-centered Rose Mary would rather paint than cook for her hungry kids (which is why 3-year-old Jeannette suffered serious burns while trying to boil hot dogs). Living in extreme poverty in rural West Virginia, the Walls family eventually squatted in a shack that lacked plumbing, heat, or electricity. To say that the kids were neglected and malnourished is an understatement. But instead of being resentful about her reprehensibly unconventional upbringing, Jeanette maintains that it made her and her three siblings resilient and self-reliant. Unfortunately, that doesn't translate here cinematically, since the impoverished Walls kids appear to have enjoyed excellent health, perfect teeth/skin, and clean clothes, and are rarely seen suffering or struggling—which contradicts the grim truth of Walls's candid autobiography, diluting its emotional potency. Slick and sanitized, this film version succumbs to sentimentality. Optional. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Memoir to Movie” featurette (26 min.), a conversation with author Jeannette Walls (16 min.), deleted scenes (10 min.), a “making-of” featurette on the soundtrack song “Summer Storm” by composer Joel P. West (4 min.), and a score segment (4 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are bonus DVD, digital, and UltraViolet copies of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a disappointing film.] (S. Granger)
The Glass Castle
Lionsgate, 127 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.99, <span class=SpellE>Blu</span>-ray/DVD Combo: $39.99, Nov. 7 Volume 32, Issue 6
The Glass Castle
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