THE BEAVER (2011) ** Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster, Anton Yelchin, Riley Thomas Stewart, Jennifer Lawrence. Gibson gives a shrewdly smart performance as a seriously depressed toy manufacturer CEO whose downward spiral leads to a botched suicide attempt where he finds salvation in the titular hand puppet (!) that is his only source of redemption from his estranged family. While the tremendous acting of Gibson is worthy of seeing just for that the "REALLY" factor is abundant (i.e. "Really?! He hasn't been committed yet?! Really?!" ) that overshadows the light and tight direction of co-star (and good friend) Foster with an equally good parallel story of Yelchin as their oldest son attempting to distance himself while falling for class valedectorian Lawrence (who is hiding her own special grief too). Although rookie scribe Kyle Killen tries to breath some life into the mental illness dramatics it also calls to question of the tricky balance of keeping a straight face every time the Cockney accented critter decides to 'speak'.
Review of The Beaver
