I knew beforehand that this movie was about a beaver puppet. Kind of hard not to. I knew that it had something to do with the main character having some sort of a mental breakdown. What I did not know was that this wasn't a comedy. I just naturally assumed such a silly premise was going to be...funny. It's not funny. It's not funny at all. I'm only saying this to prepare people who, like me, expected a comedy.
This movie is most definitely a psychological drama. Whereas there are a few chuckles, they're derived from how bizarre this movie is at times.
The premise of this movie is a man (Mel Gibsons character)has spent the last two years of his life under the weight of a crushing depression. He's barely able to muster up the energy to show up to work, which happens to be a toy company, a company that was passed on to him after his father died. He spends most his day sleeping as much as he possibly can. His wife seems to largely ignore his predicament, immersing herself in her own work. His oldest son openly despises him out of the fear that he might one day become him. His youngest son barely even knows who his father is. His self destructive depression gets so extreme that his wife asks him to leave, so he does, heading to a seedy hotel. On the way he stops by a liquor store, where in the parking lot dumpster he finds...what else...a beaver hand puppet. For reasons he doesn't understand yet, he takes it with him. This is where the movie gets bizarre. After getting ridiculously hammered, he puts on the beaver puppet and attempts suicide. Right as he's about to step off a balcony to his death, a voice calls out to him, causing him to fall back into his room. The TV falls on to his head knocking him out cold for the rest of the night. He awakens to a face to face meeting with...the Beaver. It talks in a strange Aussie accent, and tells him he's going to take over his life.
The rest of the movie is essentially a emotionless Mel Gibson being led around by his charismatic hand puppet "The Beaver". Everything he's ever wanted to be, or say, or do, "The Beaver" accomplishes it for him. This is not done for comedic effect, but to show just how severely his psyche has fractured. It's dark, and a little scary at times just how much control this other personality has, even while it's producing results.
I can't say I didn't find this movie interesting, but I found it's dark tone a bit unsettling for my tastes. I thought the acting was spot on by all involved. It's just so damned dark and depressing at times that it's a difficult watch, the ending completely saved it though. It was climactic punctuated by positive resolution. It's not your every day movie, it is definitely geared towards a more mature audience.
This movie is most definitely a psychological drama. Whereas there are a few chuckles, they're derived from how bizarre this movie is at times.
The premise of this movie is a man (Mel Gibsons character)has spent the last two years of his life under the weight of a crushing depression. He's barely able to muster up the energy to show up to work, which happens to be a toy company, a company that was passed on to him after his father died. He spends most his day sleeping as much as he possibly can. His wife seems to largely ignore his predicament, immersing herself in her own work. His oldest son openly despises him out of the fear that he might one day become him. His youngest son barely even knows who his father is. His self destructive depression gets so extreme that his wife asks him to leave, so he does, heading to a seedy hotel. On the way he stops by a liquor store, where in the parking lot dumpster he finds...what else...a beaver hand puppet. For reasons he doesn't understand yet, he takes it with him. This is where the movie gets bizarre. After getting ridiculously hammered, he puts on the beaver puppet and attempts suicide. Right as he's about to step off a balcony to his death, a voice calls out to him, causing him to fall back into his room. The TV falls on to his head knocking him out cold for the rest of the night. He awakens to a face to face meeting with...the Beaver. It talks in a strange Aussie accent, and tells him he's going to take over his life.
The rest of the movie is essentially a emotionless Mel Gibson being led around by his charismatic hand puppet "The Beaver". Everything he's ever wanted to be, or say, or do, "The Beaver" accomplishes it for him. This is not done for comedic effect, but to show just how severely his psyche has fractured. It's dark, and a little scary at times just how much control this other personality has, even while it's producing results.
I can't say I didn't find this movie interesting, but I found it's dark tone a bit unsettling for my tastes. I thought the acting was spot on by all involved. It's just so damned dark and depressing at times that it's a difficult watch, the ending completely saved it though. It was climactic punctuated by positive resolution. It's not your every day movie, it is definitely geared towards a more mature audience.