← Back to Reviews
in
This review was written long before Drumpf was on the active political scene, and when I put several similar-length reviews in one post. That explains certain things in here.
The Visitor (Thomas McCarthy, 2008)
First off, I realize that I'm giving the most serious, lowkey and low-budget film the lowest rating. That may indeed be one of my major flaws when rating films. However, I want to assure everyone that my rating is a positive recommendation, so if you haven't watched this, I'm telling you now to do it. I truly like this film. I like the way it paints a positive and HUMAN image on the illegal immigrant issue. I also realize that some people with certain views about illegal aliens will just think this film is liberal propaganda, and that there's no way we can have illegal Islamic immigrants and that we can be sure that they aren't some kind of ticking time bombs. If you believe that, OK, but the more I listen to all the people who have so many fears about what's happening in America now (Obama, "radical relationships", socialism, "destroying the future for our children", etc.), the more I realize that the fearmongers seem to isolate on one topic or one quote and beat it into the ground. They turn complex individuals into pariahs by repeating catchphrases over and over again, and then they get so mad when you call them on it, that they say silly things like "You're trying to silence our dissent!" I guess whoever "they" are, "they're" doing a crap job because everytime I turn on the car radio, your dissent comes across loud and clear!
I'm sorry because I'm supposed to be discussing this movie which is all about how the wonderful Richard Jenkins can feel that he's an "underachieving bum" of a crumbum college professor named Walter Vale until he meets the outgoing Syrian drummer Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and his Senegalese jewelry artist girlfriend (Danai Gurira) in NYC. Tarek and Walter both love the drum, so they immediately hit it off, but things go bad when Tarek is arrested (for no good reason) and when it becomes clear that he's illegal, he's incarcerated with an immediate threat of being deported. This brings Tarek's mom (Hiam Abbass) to Walter's door since she hasn't heard from her son for days. The film does play out a bit as a cut-and-dried "Why Can't We Be Friends?" treatise, but I find it has more truth than propaganda and may well be an important film to open certain people's eyes.
The Visitor (Thomas McCarthy, 2008)
First off, I realize that I'm giving the most serious, lowkey and low-budget film the lowest rating. That may indeed be one of my major flaws when rating films. However, I want to assure everyone that my rating is a positive recommendation, so if you haven't watched this, I'm telling you now to do it. I truly like this film. I like the way it paints a positive and HUMAN image on the illegal immigrant issue. I also realize that some people with certain views about illegal aliens will just think this film is liberal propaganda, and that there's no way we can have illegal Islamic immigrants and that we can be sure that they aren't some kind of ticking time bombs. If you believe that, OK, but the more I listen to all the people who have so many fears about what's happening in America now (Obama, "radical relationships", socialism, "destroying the future for our children", etc.), the more I realize that the fearmongers seem to isolate on one topic or one quote and beat it into the ground. They turn complex individuals into pariahs by repeating catchphrases over and over again, and then they get so mad when you call them on it, that they say silly things like "You're trying to silence our dissent!" I guess whoever "they" are, "they're" doing a crap job because everytime I turn on the car radio, your dissent comes across loud and clear!
I'm sorry because I'm supposed to be discussing this movie which is all about how the wonderful Richard Jenkins can feel that he's an "underachieving bum" of a crumbum college professor named Walter Vale until he meets the outgoing Syrian drummer Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) and his Senegalese jewelry artist girlfriend (Danai Gurira) in NYC. Tarek and Walter both love the drum, so they immediately hit it off, but things go bad when Tarek is arrested (for no good reason) and when it becomes clear that he's illegal, he's incarcerated with an immediate threat of being deported. This brings Tarek's mom (Hiam Abbass) to Walter's door since she hasn't heard from her son for days. The film does play out a bit as a cut-and-dried "Why Can't We Be Friends?" treatise, but I find it has more truth than propaganda and may well be an important film to open certain people's eyes.