Leo Tolstoy once wrote that “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way,” and that’s certainly true for the Walls family. Led by patriarch Rex (Woody Harrelson), the family, which consists of mother Rose (Naomi Watts) and four children, including young Jeannette (played at various stages by Chandler Head, Ella Anderson and Brie Larson), moves from town to town, usually because of Rex’s excessive drinking and run-ins with the law. As they grow up, each child vows to escape, with Jeannette putting herself through college before becoming a journalist. But some family ties are hard to break, and even as an adult, Jeannette can’t escape her father’s shadow.
Based on the best-selling memoir by Jeannette Walls, The Glass Castle is a harrowing coming-of-age story about a family living on the margins of society. It’s less an insult and more of an accurate description to call the Walls family “poor white trash,” but the film doesn’t make them simplistic stereotypes, either. Harrellson is particularly fine as a dad whose love for his children can’t seem to overcome his addiction to alcohol — and his need to constantly move around to escape his problems. The Glass Castle isn’t a pleasant experience, but it is a memorable one that will make you want to read the book it’s based on. Do so — it’s one of the best memoirs I’ve ever read.
