Well-known character actor Richard Jenkins is outstanding in a rare leading role in this wonderful, unassuming little movie, in which he plays Walter Vale, a widowed, sixty-ish economics professor whose drab existence is brightened when he befriends the tenants of his old apartment: a beautiful young Senegalese woman named Zainab (Danai Gurira) and her boyfriend, Syrian musician Tarek (Haaz Sleiman). Socially awkward and emotionally crippled, Walter takes a new interest in life after Tarek teaches him how to play an African drum, and Walter tries to intercede with U.S. immigration officials when Tarek is arrested. The Visitor could easily have become a dry treatise about post-9/11 immigration abuses, but writer-director Tom McCarthy doesn't succumb to the temptation to preach or chastise. Instead, he lets the issues present themselves through character interaction, and the story's emphasis never shifts from the relationship between these unlikely friends. A film that truly engages the emotions and reinforces one's faith in humanity, The Visitor is one of 2008's very best movies. Highly recommended. [Note: DVD extras include audio commentary by director Tom McCarthy and costar Richard Jenkins, an eight-minute “Playing the Djembe” drum featurette, a five-minute behind-the-scenes featurette, four minutes of deleted scenes with optional commentary, and trailers. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a fine film.] (E. Hulse)
The Visitor
Anchor Bay, 108 min., PG-13, DVD: $29.98, Blu-ray: $39.98, Oct. 7 Volume 23, Issue 5
The Visitor
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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