THE MAN WITHOUT A FACE (Directed by and starring Mel Gibson. With Nick Stahl, Margaret Whitton, Fay Masterson, Gaby Hoffman)

Mel Gibson is the latest star to graduate to director, and he casts himself against type as an ugly, scarred recluse. He doesn’t quite go all the way in tarnishing his own image, however, applying the gruesome prosthetic make-up to only one half of his face.

He’s the hunkmonster, a combination of Freddy Krueger and male model, just as likely to haunt your wet dreams as your nightmares. The scars establish that Mel is stretching as an actor, but it’s not much of a stretch: every time he turns his head his fans can satiate themselves on is perfect left profile.

In truth, his character, a bitter ex-teacher with dark secrets in his past, is not far removed form his familiar Mad Mel person, a brooding eccentric who predictably turns out to be a good guy. He never pulls a gun and nobody gets blown away, but he wields a pen mightier than the sword, tutoring and gradually bonding with a troubled boy from a dysfunctional family.

Mel’s debut is not faceless, although it is uncertain of its character. There is a dreamy opening before it settles into a well crafted tale of male bonding with an intriguingly sinister undercurrent. In an era when we are all too aware of child abuse, The Man Without A Face embraces the problems of a relationship between man and boy, as the townsfolk begin to suspect the worst.

But Mel is too close to the mainstream to look these issues right in the eye, shying away at the end for a predictable paen to redemption. The result is lukewarm rather than heartwarming.

RATING: HHH

BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT (Directed by Jonathan Heap. Stars Donald Sutherland, Amy Irving, Graham Greene)

I wouldn’t give this the time of day, let alone the benefit the doubt. Donald Sutherland (who will henceforth be known as father of the more talented Keifer) plays a psycho, which is about all he’s good for these days. Released from prison he immediately gets back on the job, doing the usual things that occupy a psycho’s day; leering a lot, committing murder and terrorising young women. The woman in question is his daughter, played by Amy Irving, but the subtext of child abuse and incest might as well have been printed on Ceefax for all its depth and insight.