Rex and Rose are free spirits, but very irresponsible and unemployed. They don’t feed their children, Lori, Jeannette, Brian and Maureen, right or keep a proper roof over their heads. The kids have had enough and decide to take responsibility into their own hands by saving up to go to college, have an education, have careers and have a better life than their parents.
Blaine: The book was sent to Destin Daniel Cretton by one of his producer friends and he couldn’t stop reading the book because there was times he loved the characters, then other times he would get pissed at them and then he loved them again. After Dean was done reading the book he really wanted to make it into a movie. While turning the book into a screenplay, Destin was trying to figure out what should be in the movie that is in the book and what should be taken out. Destin would talk with the author Jeannette Walls a lot in order to figure out the heart of the movie. And a lot of the stuff she discussed with him made it into the film. Jeanette Walls would get involved with the project a lot by visiting the set everyday and sharing her story and personal things with everyone in order to get the movie right.
Destin had Brie Larson in mind to play Jeannette Walls after working with her on a film called “Short Term 12”. Brie came in and read the part even though she couldn’t fully understood what the project was about. Brie knows what a brilliant man Destin is after working with him and she was curious to know what “The Glass Castle" was about sense Destin was involved. So she read the book and she was amazed by what Jeannette Walls went through and how she stayed strong. Brie Larson and Jeannette Walls would spend a lot of time together. Destin said that Brie was able to soak up a lot of Jeannette’s personality. Brie and the girls who play younger versions of Jeannette got together to create this character together.
Jeannette thought that Woody Harrelson captured the spirit of Rex the way he would balance charm with terror. Destin left Woody in charge of finding out who Rex was from Jeannette and figure out how he was going to perform. Woody would have a lot of conversations with Jeannette about Rex. Jeannette had these journals Rex had written in and showed them to Woody. Those journals were filled with very nice writing, plans and sketches for this glass castle he had imagined. Destin took a look at the journals himself and thought it was beautiful work. Jeannette was very overwhelmed seeing Woody perform as Rex every time she visited the set. Rex is the type of person you hate a lot of the time, but there are times he does something good and that hate for him fades away for a bit until he does something you hate him for again. By the end of the movie you like him. Rex is not that good of an influence on his children, but he has taught them a few things in life that are useful. He keeps holding himself back on his dream of building a glass castle. Plus he’s a drunk. Destin said that Woody Harrelson was able to convince him that he was a drunk.
There’s a scene in “The Glass Castle” where Rex and Rose crash this fancy party Jeannette is having and they make a seen. I asked myself why she doesn’t get a restraining order against them? They are both screw ups who never took responsibility seriously. There was times I was concerned that Rex might find out the kids' plan for having a better life for themselves. Jeannette would be at a bar dancing with a stranger and telling him she’s going to be leaving and attend college. I felt that it wasn’t a good idea to tell him what her plans are. He told Rex and I knew that was coming. Then after that I was concerned that Jeannette would be raped by that guy, but then she showed him the giant burn mark she has had on her belly since childhood and that creeped him out. She was lucky to get herself out of that situation.
I’m glad that Jeannette and her siblings thought ahead about taking responsibility into their own hands when they were still young enough to think about their future. They had enough of Rex’s bull shit about promising them that things would be better when they are not. They saved up so they could attend college and achieve their own dreams. When Jeanette Walls saw the film her reaction was positive. She got so into the movie that she laughed at times and got concerned at other times. That meant everything to Destin Daniel Cretton.
My rating on “The Glass Castle” is five out of five stars.
