The Visitor

The Visitor is the story of widowed university professor Walter, who has essentially been doing next to nothing in the past few years and just stalling. He has to appear at a conference to speak, an engagement he tries to wiggle his way out of but can't.

He travels from his Connecticut house to an apartment he has in New York just to find a couple, Tarek and Zainab, living in his place. They found it via one mysterious Ivan and had no idea they had been living there illegally.

As they are in dire need of housing, walter let's them stay and eventually befriends Tarek, who starts teaching Walter how to play the African drum. While out and about one day they have some trouble getting their drums through the subway turnstiles, Tarek gets falsely accused of dodging the fare and gets taken into custody.

It is only then that Walter realizes that the young couple are illegals and he tries to help as best he can to get Tarek legal representation and possibly getting him a staying permit. While Tarek is incarcerated and living in constant fear of deportation, Walter becomes very close with Tarek's mother Mouna.

The film shows the harshness of the system, but manages to do so without blaming the people working in it - like the prison guards really only doing their jobs, however frustrating it may be for Walter or anyone else that is desperate for some information on the whereabouts of their loved ones.

Despite the moments of hope and happiness, the story is a sad and desperate one. Richard Jenkins is brilliant and rightly earned the acclaim he received, including a nomination for Best Actor at the Academy Awards (losing to a wonderful Sean Penn in Milk). Another plus - nice shots of New York.

Recommendation.

9/10