THE DOOR IN THE FLOOR — *** — Jeff Bridges, Jon Foster, Kim Basinger; rated R (nudity, sex, vulgarity, profanity, racial epithets, violence, brief gore).

Jeff Bridges is one sneaky actor. You can almost forget how good he is until he pops up again to remind you that there are few better working actors in the movie industry these days.

Bridges' performance in "The Door in the Floor" really comes as nothing new, which means it's another Oscar-worthy turn.

As for the film itself, it's one of the more faithful adaptations of a John Irving novel to date, despite its being based on only about a quarter of its source material (Irving's "A Widow for One Year").

This dark comedy-drama has all the bizarre plot twists and unique characterizations of Irving's signature works. Which means that it's something of an acquired taste; some of the material is distasteful, if not completely off-putting.

The title refers to a children's book that was written and painted by Ted Cole (Bridges), a best-selling author whose marriage is considerably less successful. He and his wife, Marion (Kim Basinger), have grown apart since the deaths of their sons. Worse, they've been neglecting their young daughter, Ruth (Elle Fanning).

But big changes are in store when Eddie O'Hare (Jon Foster) comes into their lives. Eddie is supposed to be Ted's writing assistant. And at first, he finds himself driving Ted around town, picking up supplies for him and covering Ted's tracks during some of his indiscretions. Along the way, Eddie befriends Marion — a relationship that starts innocently with dinner but eventually becomes sexual.

Admittedly, this is dicey material. But screenwriter/director Tod Williams does a good job of balancing the light and dark tones, and some of the humor is very well-timed.

Still, a lot depends on the cast. In particular, Bridges' womanizing artist/writer is not the most endearing of characters. However, as played by Bridges, he's very watchable, especially as his world begins to crumble around him.

Basinger's turn as Marion might seem a bit one-note, but considering that she's playing a character who's still in mourning, her aloofness seems appropriate. And she helps make the awkward "romance" believable.

"The Door in the Floor" is rated R for nudity (full female and male, as well as some nude artwork), simulated sex and sex acts, some off-color humor about and references to sex, occasional use of strong sexual profanity and racial epithets, violence (vehicular and some fisticuffs) and brief gore. Running time: 111 minutes.

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