Review of The Beaver (2011) by Mark A — 29 Jun 2013

I found this a very dark, moving tale of a man trapped in his own private emotional nightmare who finds a way out that causes every one around him to withdraw. Mel Gibson was superb as the man, Walter Black.

When we meet Walter, his business is in the tank, his son hates him, and he finds himself in a pit of depression in which even getting out of bed is an unmanageable chore. He finds a discarded puppet, and through self-therapy begins to find a way forward.

If that's all there was to it, this would be pretty light fare. But there are unforeseen obstacles that lead this into ever darker places and becomes a much deeper, and better, film because of it.

The acting is superb. Mel Gibson turns in a very believable performance of the man who resorts to extreme measures in order to win his freedom. Jodie Foster, who also directed, plays his bewildered wife; Anton Yelchin is his entrepreneurial son; and Jennifer Lawrence plays an over-achiever dealing with her own demons.

I was completely engrossed in this tale and found it one that is not easily dismissed.