The Glass House (1972) (TV)

Cast includes:
CHARACTER	ACTOR/ACTRESS	RATING
Hugo Slocum	Vic Morrow
Brian Courtland	Clu Gulager
Lennox Beach	Billy Dee Williams	½
Allan Campbell	Kristoffer Tabori
Warden Auerbach	Dean Jagger
Jonathan Paige	Alan Alda

Review

This produced-for-TV movie would have fared well with a cinematic release had it been given one, because it's a powerful, timelessly relevant and very well acted film. Bearing in mind the limited resources with which it was made, the production suffers more from aging than its contemporary counterparts. But focusing on the acting and thematic value, The Glass House is impressively effective after more than 30 years. The tension between the characters and ambience of the prison have an eerie authenticity to them. The direction, by Tom Gries, is dark, brooding and pessimistic, but also very fortifying. And the acting is top-notch, particularly from Morrow, Tabori and Alda. The latter can hardly be said to be the greatest chameleon of actors, but in this film you see what a great leading talent he was in his early days – he's oozing of a balanced combination of subdued aggression and fear.