seems like there were too many characters

Due to the film choosing to have so many characters, only Barbara Hershey's character was fully developed. Martha Plimpton's character was closest runner-up by virtue of her performance being compelling, but her character wasn't written very deep. It seemed to me that having the framing story be around the Jill Clayburgh character was a big mistake, as her character was treated as very shallow and stupid, redeemed only somewhat by her decision at the end, but still not having enough depth to support her story being the thing that begins and ends the movie. Was there any reason for the Pruitt Taylor Vince character to be there? His character didn't seem to do anything important, his only difference from the caged son being that he was less hunky and more touched in the head. Mare Winningham's character went from sympathetic (we feel for her being trapped and pregnant in this backwater) to pathetic TV zombie, but the character didn't have enough depth (she doesn't talk much) for us to feel this as a tragic development. An interesting movie I don't regret watching, but it didn't work for me as a satisfying story.