THE VISITOR

Director:  Thomas McCarthy
Cast:   Richard Jenkins, Haaz Sleiman, Hiam Abbass, and Maggie Moore
Runtime: 107 minutes
Country: USA
Language: English
Rating: PG (Coarse language)

Reviews: www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10008820-visitor

Official Site: www.thevisitorfilm.com

Sixty-two-year-old Walter Vale (Richard Jenkins) 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. Victims of a real estate scam, Tarek (Haaz Sleiman), a Syrian man, and Zainab (Danai Gurira), his Senegalese girlfriend, have nowhere else to go. In the first of a series of tests of the heart, Walter reluctantly allows the couple to stay with him. Touched by his kindness, Tarek, a talented musician, insists on teaching the aging academic to play the African drum. The instrument's exuberant rhythms revitalize Walter's faltering spirit and open his eyes to a vibrant world of local jazz clubs and Central Park drum circles. As the friendship between the two men deepens, the differences in culture, age and temperament fall away. After being stopped by police in the subway, Tarek is arrested as an undocumented citizen and held for deportation. As his situation turns desperate, Walter finds himself compelled to help his new friend with a passion he thought he had long ago lost. When Tarek's beautiful mother Mouna (Hiam Abbass) arrives unexpectedly in search of her son, the professor's personal commitment develops into an unlikely romance.

It's through these newfound connections with three virtual strangers that Walter is awakened to a new world and a new life.

“A heartfelt human drama that sneaks up and floors you.” - Rolling Stone

“The curious thing about The Visitor is that even as it goes more or less where you think it will, it still manages to surprise you along the way.” - New York Time

 

Summer Cinema 2008 July 7 - THE VISITOR July 28 - HONEYDRIPPER August 18 - FUGITIVE PIECES