A businessman suffers a mental breakdown and is driven to the point of suicide. Salvation comes in the unlikely form of a beaver hand puppet. He finds he can regain the will to live by communicating his repressed feelings through the puppet, generating a nationwide media sensation in the process. Drama, starring Mel Gibson, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence and Jodie Foster, who also directed
Mel Gibson's off-screen exploits have lumbered him with some heavy baggage, so it's surprising to see him embrace that vulnerability in Jodie Foster's oddball comedy. Gibson plays depressed toy executive Walter Black, who begins to build a bridge back to his former wellbeing by using a furry puppet - the Beaver - to speak through, adopting a voice that sounds unnervingly like Ray Winstone. Foster co-stars as his long-suffering wife, effectively mirroring our disbelief as Walter, slowly emerging from a daze, seduces her with the puppet literally on hand. In her role as director, Foster skilfully balances the comedy and the tragedy of the situation, and how Walter's eldest son (Anton Yelchin) attempts to cope. And thanks to her light-handed touch, it remains surprisingly moving and upbeat, even when the line between Walter's recovery and insanity begins to blur.
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Walter Black | Mel Gibson |
| Meredith Black | Jodie Foster |
| Porter Black | Anton Yelchin |
| Norah | Jennifer Lawrence (2) |
| Vice president | Cherry Jones |
| Henry Black | Riley Thomas Stewart |
| Jared | Zachary Booth |
| Volunteer dad | Jeff Corbett |
| Norah's mum | Kelly Coffield Park |
| Hector | Michael Rivera |
| role | name |
|---|---|
| Director | Jodie Foster |
