CHILD OF GLASS

title: CHILD OF GLASS
year: 1978
cast: Steve Shaw, Katy Kurtzman, Olivia Barash
rating: ***1/2

While it's perplexed adults for centuries, the children in Disney films seem to have grasped the Meaning of Life… at least in their eyes: When something needs discovering, discover it! In this made for TV movie, a family moves into an antebellum mansion once owned by a river pirate. The mother and father are about as important as those mushmouthed teachers in Peanuts cartoons – this is all about the curious son Alexander, played by the late Steve Shaw, who meets the niece of a local palm reader. And as the young adventurous "Blossom Culp," Katy Kurtzman creates a memorably quirky tomboy: Donning glasses and dressed like a traveling orphan, she determinedly riles Alexander into seeking the truth behind the mansion's history. But he gets the prime directive on his own with the help of a blue-hued ghost. The daughter of the mansion’s former owner, “Ida Dumaine” died mysteriously and, to acquire eternal rest, provides a riddle that desperately needs solving. Cult actress Olivia Barash, as the lovely little wraith holding a fluffy dog, makes sporadic yet important appearances, and at one point turns human for a heartfelt slow dance during a party, later providing a dog/cat chase to add some lightweight hijinx to the underlying spooky vibe… especially with the dependably villanious Anthony Zerbe on board. But even with the suspenseful chills, it's a great movie for kids, especially creative ones.