Tom McCarthy's second feature, The Visitor, gets a Region 2 DVD release in the UK on 9th February and is well worth seeking out. It's a gently comic and ultimately moving tale of a lonely college professor's relationship with a young immigrant couple in New York, which deftly touches on (an unsatisfactory) US immigration policy along the way. Walter (Richard Jenkins) is a widower of 5 years, bored with his job and simply going through the motions of a middle-aged academic. On returning to New York after an extended absence, Walter finds Syrian musician, Tarek (Haaz Sleiman), and his Senegalese girlfriend, Zainab (Dania Gurira) enjoying a peaceful life in his flat. Having fallen victim to a rental scam, the young couple politely leave. Realising they have nowhere else to go, the benevolent professor invites them back to stay with him whilst they sort themselves out. At once Walter is drawn to Tarek's drum playing and they strike up a friendship through a mutual interest in music. Things take a turn for the worse when Tarek is unfairly arrested and sent to an immigration facility, as it transpires that the couple have been living in America illegally. At this point McCarthy's film changes focus as Tarek's concerned mother, Mouna, arrives on the scene and a tender love story emerges amongst the struggle to prevent her son's deportation.
There's something about restrained emotion that is uniquely affecting and McCarthy's understated style is wonderfully suited to some remarkably subtle performances that imply so much from so little. At first Walter is the archetypal insular professor, polite to a fault, but stagnant, staid and lacking the social mobility that would keep him from his work. He's confined by the expectations and trappings of his past life without an escape route. As the story develops, glimpses beneath this austere facade reveal a wealth of latent emotion, repressed sorrow and melancholy. McCarthy uses music to chart Walter's emotional resurrection, both in his bond with Tarek and later through his relationship with Mouna. When we first meet him he's firing his umpteenth piano teacher, unable to get to grips with an instrument he's playing solely as a homage to his dead wife. In leaving this behind Walter lays to rest the stifling memory of her through a cultural and romantic transition, opening a previously untapped source of diversity as he immerses himself in the lives of his new friends.
Implicitly and explicitly a film 'about' race relations, The Visitor succeeds by casting a resolutely non-judgemental look over proceedings. Race-related misunderstandings, rather than slurs, are presented as everyday occurrences without the chastising of either party that could compromise a lesser film. A particularly telling scene (the kind of which there are many) has Zainab asked where she comes from whilst working at her jewellery stall. On replying “Senegal”, the shopper responds how lovely it is - based on her recent visit to Cape Town. To McCarthy's credit it never feels like a smothering message movie, rather it alludes to ongoing tensions with a gentleness that cumulatively makes an impact. Walter's involvement in Tarek and Zainab's lives is more a fish-out-of-water scenario than a culture clash polemic. Aside from any racial and cultural commentary, The Visitor actually uses issues of immigration policy as a backdrop to the human drama, finally expressing little beyond frustration at its workings.
A slow burning pace suits the material and characters well, and though the crescendo would lack punch in a more showy film, here it's given tremendous clout by the preceding restraint, as the cathartic potential of Walter's newly learnt drum skills is realised.
The DVD extras will be...
Audio Commentary with Director Tom McCarthy and actor Richard Jenkins
Behind-The-Scenes with The Visitor
Deleted Scenes (With commentary as well)
“Playing the Djembe” featurette
Theatrical trailer
