The Visitor

[MacGuffin]

Trailer here.

Release Date: April 11th, 2008 (wide)

Starring: Richard Jenkins, Haaz Sleiman, Danai Gurira, Hiam Abbass, Marian Seldes

Directed by: Tom McCarthy (The Station Agent)

Premise: Sixty-two-year-old Walter Vale is sleepwalking through his life. Having lost his passion for teaching and writing, he fills the void by unsuccessfully trying to learn to play classical piano. When his college sends him to Manhattan to attend a conference, Walter is surprised to find a young couple has taken up residence in his apartment.

[MacGuffin]

I don't know why this film didn't get more press or isn't winning all the end-of-the-year praise that it deserves. There wasn't even a thread for it, and I only really heard about it from other xixax members mentioning it in other threads. This was an astounding film. Richard Jenkins was purely amazing in this role, (as were the entire cast) and needs to be nominated, even if it's just for an xixax award. There's a scene towards the end in the facility where he just shines; powerful without being over the top. Part coming-of-late-age story, part romance, part musical; it all adds up to a top ten film not to be looked over or missed.

[pete]

I saw it and loved it but couldn't find a thread for it so I didn't create one.  GREAT acting and great drama.

[abuck1220]

i could have done w/o the romance angle, but, yeah, it was pretty damn good. should be in my top 10.

[Tommy Both]

This film will end up in my top 10 of 2008

[SiliasRuby]

I can't believe I'm dittoing everybody but really this was a phenomenol movie. Absolutely amazing performances and Richard Jenkins should get at least a nod come oscar season. So profoundly amazing.

[pete]

bummed me out all the more to see him in step brothers.

[Gamblour.]

Saw this two times now at the video store, but after reading this I will finally pick this up. Thanks for the suggestion guys.

[Kal]

Yeah I thought this was really great. One of our new films in production is actually called U.S. Visitor, and the original title was Visitor, so I was curious to watch this as soon as it came out without knowing what it was about.

Also, being an immigrant here and knowing a handful of people who were deported, and many more who struggled to get their papers (getting married to an American, spending more than what they had in lawyers, etc), I thought the story was really interesting and well developed. You really connect with what these people are going through.

Richard jenkins is brilliant. The funniest thing is that the first time I noticed him, believe it or not, was during that stupid movie with Tom Green where he plays a judge. He was so funny in that ridiculous film that every time I see him somewhere I'm interested. He was one of the bright spots of Burn After Reading as well.

[pete]

where are you from Andy?

[Kal]

where are you from Andy?

Argentina

[Sleepless]

May I offer The Visitor for your consideration in the categories of Best Male Performance, Best Screenplay and Best Film. Thank-you.

Spoils...

It has been a very long while since I saw a film that touched me as much as The Visitor did. It's partly my own fault; most of the films I've seen in the cinema this year have been bombastic effects and star-driven spectacles. Most have been extremely underwhelming and instantly forgettable. I can't even remember any films I saw before May.

The Visitor was much different medicine, and something my cinephile soul had been craving. Character actor Richard Jenkins (The Man Who Wasn't There, Step Brothers) is Walter Vale, a university professor bored with life and bored with himself. He turns in one of the best performances I've witnesses this year. And yet it couldn't be more different from its closest rival in achievement... yes, I'm talking about Heath.

The films opens with a series of short, quiet scenes. Almost like a series of vignettes. Short, detached glimpses into the life of this aging man: he tries to learn the piano; he refuses to accept a student's late paper; he sits alone and drinks red wine... They're about as disconnected from each other as he is from himself. And yet as disconnected from each other as they are, somehow they resonate. Like distinctly separate drum beats coming together to form a cacophony of music. Which is no accident.

Against his wishes, Walter travels to New York to present a paper he co-authored at an NYU conference. But upon arriving at his long-vacant New York apartment he finds a fresh vase of flowers on the coffee table. That's a nice moment. Something beautiful, yet slightly eery. And completely everyday normal. It turns out that an immigrant couple, Tarek and Zainab (the equally wonderful Haaz Sleiman and Danai Gurira respectively), have been rented Walter's apartment by some scam artist. After some initial confusion the couple agree to move out. And Walter sits there on the sofa, sipping his wine, watching them pack up, hardly reacting to this most surreal of circumstances. Even this unexpected event cannot jolt him awake again.

In the end, Walter allows the couple to stay with him a while longer whilst they find alternative accommodation.

And this is when Walter begins to wake. These unusual companions slowly start to have an affect on him. No longer is his life simply a series of disconnected events. He slowly starts to get to know the couple. He becomes captivated by Tarek's drum-playing, and eventually has a go himself. With Tarek's encouragement he even plays his drum in the middle of Central Park. And he smiles! Finally, something he can enjoy in life. Maybe that's the difference between the piano and African drums; with the piano there's very strict guidelines on how to play, how to hold yourself, you have to follow someone else's music... With the drums you just hit it, create your own rhythm. That scene in Central Park is a high point, and there is little doubt that this is the happiest Walter has been in a while.

And then everything changes.

Tarek is arrested following a misunderstanding on the subway. And then we learn why Zainab has been so stand-offish with Walter all along. Both she and Tarek are illegal. Sure enough, the next day Walter learns that Tarek has been moved to a detention centre in Queens. But he is a part of the couple's life now. He takes it upon himself to hire an immigration lawyer on their behalf, and visits Tarek regularly, the two of them tapping out a beat on separate sides of the glass division. Through these people, Walter has found meaning in his life, a purpose, and a passion. Soon, too, Tarek's mother Mouna (Hiam Abbass) arrives in New York, concerned that she has not heard from her son for several days. Walter befriends her, too, and a quiet friendship emerges between the two.

The Visitor is the story of a man who relearns that we are not alone in life. We might all be the lead in our own stories, but ultimately we are connected to everyone around us, and we have the power to influence other people's lives, and hopefully made a positive impact. We are all banging out our own beat, but when those different rhythms come together the result is something beautiful.

It is impossible to discuss The Visitor without mention of the music. In the early scenes Walter tries to play the piano. He has had a total of five piano teachers, but still is getting nowhere. It is only in one perfect scene where he runs into an old New York neighbor, where we learn the reason: his late wife used to play the piano. Walter has been trying to learn it, presumably to feel close to her. Although the revelation is downplayed to the point where its blink-and-you'll-miss-it, the revelation gives us significant insight into Walter's psyche. And perhaps that's why Jan A.P. Kaczmarek's haunting score is based largely around the piano, to subconsciously remind us that the ghost of Walter's wife is always in his mind, and affects everything he does. On a happy note, however, is all the drum music which brings Walter alive again, and gives him fresh meaning and perspective. In particular, the music of Fela Kuti should enjoy some success as a result of this film, at it is his CD Tarek gifts to Walter as an example of something all drummers must listen to.

Of course, at the end of the day, whatever happens in everyone else's story, Walter must return home to his job at the university. His character has grown, but life still goes on. The final shot of the film is of Walter waiting for the train, and banging on his drum with all the strength he's got. It's such a simple scene, and incredibly effective. It's cathartic. You can see it from his body language, you can hear it in the beats. The anger, the grief, the frustration, everything... and it is beautiful. The perfect end to this wonderful film. It will stay in your memory and age well, just like that red wine Walter loves so much.

[Stefen]

You've convinced me. And I haven't even seen it.

[Sleepless]

Do.

[Stefen]

I'll see The Visitor if you see Let The Right One In.