Shrink (Kevin Spacey, Robin Williams, Mark Webber, Saffron Burrows, Keke Palmer, Robert Loggia) – An indie film with very limited distribution so far, Shrink is the story of a very flawed psychiatrist, Henry Carter, his family and his patients. Kevin Spacey, who has lived in London for the past several years and hasn’t been doing many movies, stars as a pot-addicted shrink who hasn’t gotten over the suicide of his wife. He smokes the best stuff and drinks excessively, too, all to forget his past. He is clearly as messed up as his patients, who include a movie star (Robin Williams in an uncredited role) who wants to think of himself as a sex addict so he can cheat on his wide; an actress (beautiful Saffron Burrows); and an agoraphobic Hollywood agent (Dallas Roberts) among others. Carter’s father (veteran Robert Loggia), who is also a psychiatrist, gives him a patient – Jemma (Keke Palmer of Akellah and the Bee), a teenager with lots of problems in school due to the suicide of her mother. These characters are offbeat, troubled, haunted, odd and generally sad. Carter is both victim and healer. His relationship with Jeremy (Mark Webber), his godbrother, is somewhat strained, too, as it is with most of his family, which attempts an intervention. After getting high with Carter, Jeremy, a would-be writer, takes Jemma’s file, befriends her, and writes a screenplay about her.
As the story is revealed and the plots begin to move and intersect, the film moves from offbeat to more conventional while maintaining its pace and uniqueness. If the story is a bit hard to follow – somewhat like Crash meets The Player – the ending is a bit too neat – also somewhat like Crash and The Player. Spacey is his usual excellent self, portraying the stoned doctor perfectly through his downward spiral and then to the conclusion of the film. This may be the kind of film that could garner some Oscar buzz for Spacey but not for the movie itself because the pacing is slow, some of the characters aren’t full enough, and the film feels long. If this movie makes it to your town, be sure to see it. If not, wait for it to hit the video stores.