Film Reviews

The Beaver

• Rating:
• Director: Jodie Foster
• Starring: Anton Yelchin
• Details: US/90mins 15A

While much has been made of the furore surrounding Mel Gibson's phone ranting, prior to that story breaking out like a syphilis blitz on TMZ, he took a role in an unconventional drama about a man suffering from depression. Were it not for Jodie Foster helming here, the actor may never have joined the production and given such a powerful performance. However, her direction is ironically what hinders the film from really resonating.
Gibson is successful businessman, Walter Black, a man who has been suffering from depression for some time. When his illness finally reaches breaking point and he's kicked out by his tired, once resilient wife (Foster), he stumbles across a puppet in a dumpster. The beaver becomes a crutch for Walter as he uses it to create a psychological barrier between him and whoever is attempting to converse with him. While his wife and youngest son are just happy to see him attempting to mix in society again, his eldest (Anton Yelchin - sporting distracting sideburns) is terrified he'll end up like his old man one day, so resents him.
An intriguing idea for a film, and one that ostensibly seems comedic, it's actually a far darker affair than you'd expect. The tone never really veers towards laughs and there's always an underlining tragic feel to proceedings. The problem is, we only ever get to see Walter sans beaver in a montage at the beginning of the film where Gibson explains through voice over how he's felt depressed for a long time. That doesn't make us feel less empathy towards him, but it does for those around him – specifically his wife and eldest son. It's assumed they've put up with this type of behaviour for a long time, but we're not privy to any of it.
Foster's use of soundtrack is also a little grating and contradicts the tone she was going for - quirky, when it should have been subtle. That said, when the camera zones in on Gibson's tired, conflicted face you will notice little else around it. His relationship with his youngest offspring (a natural Thomas Stewart) is easily the most affecting of the film, and Gibson is at his strongest when looking at the child - terrified that he too will end up just like him. Foster's role is weak and relatively one dimensional, while Jennifer Lawrence is predictably solid as the troubled cheerleader, but feels like a character from her own movie.
Gibson is excellent and it's an original, innovative concept for a film that treats its subject matter with the sensitivity it deserves. But in the right hands, The Beaver could've been something more.

Review by Mike Sheridan