The Visitor (2007)

The first 15 minutes of The Visitor are agonizing boredom, but sit through it and you will be wonderfully rewarded. If it weren't for the drudgery of the opening where we meet the shut in, widowed, apathetic professor Walter Vale, you might not appreciate how far the film takes you (and Walter) by the end.

Walter is in New York City to present a paper at a conference. He opens the door to his often abandoned apartment to find Tarek, a Syrian drummer, and his girlfriend Zainab, a Senegalese jewelry maker, living there. They were conned about the apartment's vacancy and immediately pack up to leave. Walter lets them, but then follows them and tells them to stay.

What follows changes Walter's life and it's so emotionally beautiful that everything else fades away. The sets, the lighting, it's all barely noticeable (and that can be a good thing) because these characters are so captivating. The whole cast does a fantastic job. Haaz Sleiman as Tarek is charismatic and endearing. Danai Jekesai Gurira makes the melting of Zainab's frosty disposition reveal an even more interesting woman. Hiam Abbass as Tarek's mother Mouna is tough but an easy person with which to sympathize. And Richard Jenkins delivers a subtle, intimate performance as the aforementioned professor. His Oscar nomination was so very much deserved.

It's hard to say much more about it without giving too much away, so just hang tight through the very beginning and prepare to watch the walls come down around a man's heart.

Rating: 5/5
Recommended for: Anyone who can stand to watch a quiet movie with great characters