Scandal, Strategy and ‘Beaver’

3:59 PM PDT 3/22/2011 by Kirk Honeycutt

While not Mission Accomplished, Stage 1 of “Save the Beaver” is a rousing success.

Jodie Foster’s The Beaver, held back from release for six months following leaked phone tapes of its star’s tirade against his ex-girlfriend, finally premiered March 16 at the South by Southwest Festival in Austin. Reviews have mostly been positive, thus validating a strategy by Summit to accept the SXSW slot — where the crowd was bound to be more open to an outlaw celebrity — before the film’s May 6 release. The film’s gracious actress-director went to Austin with a solid game plan, never ducking a question in interviews or appearances, serving to remind everyone that this is a Jodie Foster and not
a Mel Gibson film.